Collette Dunhill: My life and my passion is Art

My life and my passion is Art, and every day of my life, I follow on my creative desires.

In the process of Makeup, I have no limits. Art is my element. I just let my mind wander and then stretching the ideas on the face. I can do absolutely anything!

Please briefly tell us about your background. Who is Collette Dunhill as an artist?

I am Collette Dunhill- a professional makeup artist. I have extensive experience all over the world. At New York Fashion Week, with designers, models, celebrities, etc. I have actually come a long way to be where I am now. I’m grateful to my loved ones for my success. They’ve always been there for me. I’m grateful for my genetics because as long as I can remember I’ve been drawing all the time. And I’m grateful to my parents for allowing me to paint the walls in our house.

I’m so blessed to have a best friend/husband, who was the very first person to believe in me. He was the first one to arrange a meeting for me with the most famous artist in my country. That moment was the beginning of my journey as a makeup artist. Each person who comes into my life brings me either an experience or a new view of life. That’s why I am grateful to everyone. I know for a fact that you cannot even imagine how society needs my profession. A lot of people think that it is not a serious job, that no one really needs it.

What do you love the most about your profession?

My profession is a Jazz - constant carousel of new experiences, variety of interesting people and emotions on each project that I work on. This aspect of my work motivates me on a daily bases and allows me to enjoy the process of my job even more. I can admit that this is not an easy task but at the same time it never gets tedious.

You have an impressive portfolio. How would you describe your signature look and what is it about your style that sets you apart from other makeup artists?

I do greatly appreciate your positive feedback. I’m an artist of pastel. I prefer clean to use clean and calm tones. Obviously, spending some time in Miami has impacted me in a positive way and allowed me to appreciate more bright and lush colours which I currently apply to my work. My main goal still remains the same though – I’m here to emphasize the current traits of my clients and do my best to make a better version of them.

Why is having an MUA essential to a photographer? What can you provide to help a photographer's images stand out?

It is a very close connection between two artists, because of that it is important to have a photographer who understands and values your visions. This allows the photographer to capture the emotion which was emphasized by MUA and vice versa.

What advice can you give to prospective students thinking about an education and career in make-up artists?

First of all, you have to be prepared to work extremely hard. Nothing comes easy and this can also be applied to this profession as well. Only those who dedicate hours upon hours of work will proceed into success. This profession requires a lot of patience, responsibility and trust in yourself and what you’re doing. It never gets tedious, as I mentioned previously – it is constant carousel of emotions and experiences on each day of your work. If you trust yourself and you’re dedicated – then continue doing it, motivate yourself and don’t give up.

Can you tell us about a memorable moment you had while doing makeup?

I have a lot of memorable moments gathered in my time of this work. Most of those moments happen when every decision, concepts and plans are getting changed on the fly. One of the memorable moments is when my brush accidentally left it bristles on clients face. Obviously, the client didn‘t noticed that but I had to pretend that everything is alright and don‘t cause unecessary panic. Moments like that happen but there are also so many amazing and memorable experiences as well.

In your opinion, what are common mistakes you see women make on their makeup?

I wouldn’t aim this towards woman only, mistakes with their make ups are being seen by both man and woman and I think that is natural process of learning. What’s preventing people from avoiding these mistakes are being afraid of making them. Step by step, fixing one mistake by another allows person to learn and avoid same mistakes happening in the future. Social media make up is an art and I wouldn’t adapt this type of make up to normal day life. It’s exotic and it is designed to be emphasized by social media like Instagram ect.

Looking back, how has make-up artistry changed or influenced you as a person?

Make-up industry is constantly evolving impacting me as an artist and professional as well. During my time of this profession I have learned to pay attention to details, understand that most important things are displayed in small details of your work. On the other hand, I have learned to enjoy of what I’m doing, to appreciate what I’ve got and how far I came in order to build what I’ve got so far now.

How do you keep up with all the new trends and styles? Where do you pull your inspiration from to help you with your work?

At the beginning of my professional career I was constantly researching new trends, gathering information on new ideas until it became my daily routine. This is my passion and by doing my daily day to day life I’m always involved in gathering new information.

What exciting new project should we expect from you in the future?

You never know what future will bring to you but I have an idea that’s been with me for a while. I cannot disclose everything because currently that’s only a thought of mine which needs time and work to be implemented but it is related to wedding / bride make-up. This part of industry hasn’t seen any new changes, breath of fresh ideas for a while and my idea surrounds this part of industry. I’m actually surprised why do we have to follow the same make-up pattern for so many years as a tradition? Why can’t we have something new, unexpected, unusual, and something exotic? I hope in the near future I will be able to present my new project related to this area of make-up industry and provide my alternatives to what we have now.