Makeup Artist Dick Page's Guide to Fashion Week
British makeup artist Dick Page began his career in London in the late 1980s and was quickly recognized for his raw talent, a particular attention to detail and an incredible ability to enhance the natural, unique features of every woman’s face. Page rose to become an industry leader, as the key makeup artist for the runways of Marc Jacobs, Michael Kors, and Narciso Rodriguez among others, and with his work appearing in magazines like Vogue and Allure. He teamed up with Shiseido in 1997 and currently serves as their Artistic Director. Currently residing in New York, we caught up with the cosmetics genius right before he hit the ground running for New York Fashion Week. Read on to see how he survives the chaos.
This season I’m doing makeup at… Zero+Maria Cornejo, KYE, Narciso Rodriguez, Michael Kors, Céline, and Hermès.
I fill my bag with… everything! I need a very comprehensive kit for tests and then if there’s time, I’ll edit it down a bit for the show. I also carry my own light as it’s often dim backstage.
My go-to outfit is… jeans with a white T-shirt and white shirt. I find it helps to reflect the little light there is onto the models.
The only shoes I’ll wear are… New Balance sneakers. I’m liking my Grandpa style velcros right now.
I snack on… Whatever’s around, but I make a point to eat as well as I can at home so I don’t eat too much junk at work.
Four weeks before fashion week, I… am just re-entering from the holidays, so there’s a little adjustment period.
The night before, I… try to have an early dinner and an early night.
In the morning I eat… herring or sardines on toast. Sometimes cold oatmeal with nuts, a banana, and milk.
If I have a minute to workout I… do some squats and a bit of work on the gymnastic rings in the apartment or do pushups on the pushup bars our trainer Amy and her boyfriend Ryan gave us.
You’ll catch me reading… not sure yet, but The Book of Strange New Things by Michel Faber is in the queue.
I get around in… a polar bear-drawn sled. I wish. Uber, cab, or on foot.
The only way I can clear my mind is… putting the needle on the record and playing some favorite tunes at home.
My coffee shop order is… PG Tips tea with milk and sugar, but I carry teabags in my kit to be sure.
The product I can’t do a show without is… my arsenal of Shiseido colors and a good range of base and cover up shades.
My current favorite makeup look is… the one I’m doing at the moment.
The makeup look I’m bored to death of is… that other one. It knows who it is.
If I’m losing my mind I repeat…. “It’s only a movie…”
The song that pumps up my energy is… “Queen of Denmark” by John Grant
My favorite part about fashion week is… the apparently effortless results.
But I can’t handle the… mania it seems to take to produce those results.
I wind down with a glass of… Westbrook One Claw Pale Ale from Mount Pleasant, South Carolina.
When it’s all over, I can’t wait to… return to my regularly scheduled programming.
Related:
How This Former Hippie Became a Royal Makeup Artist
