We can Photoshop and FaceTune and filter everything right from a little rectangle in the palm of our hands. It was only a matter of time before digital makeup became a trend that would allow makeup artists to keep up with the advancements in technology across every industry. Since about 2017, Sephora has had digital makeup scanners that allow you to try on products without needing to physically put it on. Celebrity makeup artist Gucci Westman has used the Perfect365 PRO app to help try makeup looks before final presentations at New York Fashion Week. “I love the color drop feature, where I can take a photo of a product I am using and apply it to a look I am creating, or try the product on virtually right then and there. The app streamlines the whole process of creating a makeup look, but also offers unlimited creative possibilities, and I think it’s a vital tool for makeup artists, during New York Fashion Week and beyond,” says Westman.
Digital makeup has been a practice in the beauty industry for a few years now, but the COVID-19 pandemic has forced makeup artists utilizing traditional makeup application methods to get creative and adopt newer, safer methods. While Westman uses apps to help visualize what products work best for each model, Alejandre uses Photoshop to imagine fantastical, pearl-studded works of art. Dazed Magazine recently featured Raoul Alejandre as a celebrity makeup artist making use of this innovative tech to continue creating his artistic visuals. Raoul enters the realm of fantasy with his use of eccentric color and contour, creating characters animated enough to be the stars of a new science fiction Cartoon Network series titled ‘GLAMdroid,’ the story of five visually stunning robot aliens from cyberspace traveling across the galaxy to restore beauty and glamor to every planet and living creature. “Nature has so much life, colour, movements, textures. While anime is full of fantasy and imagination. Stimulated by both, I chose to apply these shapes, colours, and line work to my art using a different medium,” Raoul tells Dazed.
With a pandemic limiting everyone’s access to in-person work, this has given Raoul a way to connect with people in a very personal and creative way while also allowing others to appreciate the art that he creates. “Technology has provided a platform that has allowed me to express myself and experiment in the industry in such a different way than when I began my career. It has given everyone the opportunity to express, educate, and inspire,” says Raoul.
This functionality will be useful in creating campaigns, working on editorials, designing content for social media, and preparation for in-person makeup application. This technology does lack utility in reality for walking runways, special events and everyday life. It will be interesting to see if this innovation compounded by the necessity for social distancing in a pandemic will lead to the development of a technology that can physically apply the makeup that gets designed digitally.