Westwood’s new melancholy make-up for men

Make-up for men isn’t something usually thought about in the fashion and beauty world, but at London Collections: Men, British fashion queen Vivienne Westwood managed to change all that. Last week at the London Collections, Westwood showcased a “sad face” make-up for men.

It is said to have been inspired by a controversial expression that Westwood herself made sure she was wearing at the end of her last Red Label show and at the closing of the Paralympic Games (where she famously displayed her climate change banner).

For her collection, MAC senior artist Pablo Rodriguez was asked to create a much gloomier look than we are used to for fashion show beauty. Instead of the usual “natural look”, the model’s make-up stood centre stage, hand-in-hand with the fashion pieces. 

The finished pieces gave a distinct “moody” aura to the show. Whether you love or hate its message or its moodiness, Rodriguez says the make-up for men “represented an abstract image of a sad face of disapproval, so the models had a pointing down mouth and one sketchy round eye”. And indeed, the “sketchy round eye” was the most striking part of Westwood’s collection, in addition to the drawn on moustaches – which were very in keeping with autumn/winter ’13 for the male trend of extra facial hair. 

The make-up was created using MAC Pro Acrylic Paints in black on fair skin models and white for darker tones. Some of the models also sported the stripes of American footballers on their cheeks. 

Instead of using make-up as a tool to create the final piece, the fashion designer expressively made the make-up the final piece to convey a darker message. Westwood’s refreshing and melancholic twist to her collection proved that make-up isn’t just for women. 

Katie Dzierozynski