Want to know what it takes to make it as a fashion week MUA? Eleanor Vousden went backstage with top make-up artist Lan Nguyen Grealis to discover her tips and the backstage trends set to be big for AW20

1. Reach out

Fashion week is one of the hardest parts of the industry to break in to as it’s about who you know, says Nguyen Grealis. Start by researching your favourite make-up artists and how they made it. “You’ve got to follow a trail of people before you can get in,” she says. “Think about what types of looks you’re interested in, or key make-up artists you look up to, and then find out who their agent is and approach the agency,” she says. Working with brands that support the shows is another way to get your foot in the door.

2. Learn what it takes

“I’ve always been a champion of letting people come in off the cuff, because I feel it’s so important for new artists to understand what it takes to do it,” she says. “It’s not like you come out of school and go straight into fashion week shows; it takes maybe six or seven years of carrying, holding and cleaning brushes for other make-up artists before you actually get the chance to do the make-up.”

3. Have the right attitude

“I like seeing people who really want to learn,” she says. “You can teach skills, but you can’t teach attitude.” Each year, Nguyen Grealis will choose one to three assistants who will travel with her year-round to develop their skills and portfolio, so it’s important to get stuck in and support the artist. “Some of my assistants have been with me 10 or 12 years; it’s all about teamwork,” she says.

4. Build your network

Create allegiances with other make-up artists. “If you pair up with other MUAs, a lot more doors will open up,” says Nguyen Grealis. “I can’t be everywhere, so I would rather give opportunities to people that I know. I can say: ‘they’d be great for that job’, then my clients down the line will say: ‘Lan recommends this person’ because I’ve trained them.”

5. Look the part

“The impression you give is so important,” she adds. “Your portfolio has to be really slick, you have to have the right etiquette and the right uniform – you can’t just turn up in a pair of jeans and expect someone to say ‘we’ll hire you to be our make-up artist’. You don’t always have to have a full face of make-up, but it’s so important to be presentable.”

All photography: James Basire for Mii Cosmetics and BeautyLab London

THE AW20 BACKSTAGE LOOKS

Nguyen Grealis led the make-up direction at the On/Off AW20 show at London Fashion Week, which encompassed five different designers and make-up looks

Iyanu

Iyanu’s reflective designs lent inspiration for a riot of colour and luminous skin, says Nguyen Grealis. “It has a metallic feel, so we replicated that in the skin and with lots of graphic shapes – we used the make-up as an accessory, so it’s quite mask-like.”

Yan Dengyu

“Yan Dengyu’s clothes are very filmesque, so created a super-human vibe,” she says. Skin was kept fresh but contoured around the eyes and cheekbones. Then, the look was finished with dots of crystals for a robotic effect.

Zaful

“Zaful is very sports-luxe and reflective, so we did silver accents on the eye sockets and the ears,” she says. To match the sporty feel, skin was kept dewy and flushed with pink on the cheeks.

House of Sheldon

Broken dolls were the inspiration behind the look and smoky eyes were accented with gold leaf. “We also put gold leaf on the lips and let it break off naturally, so they’ve still got this doll-like impression, but its broken,” she explains.

404

Modern witches informed the make-up at 404. “The darkness comes from the fact that we kept the skin quite muted, but then the colourful flame-like eyebrows make it very beautiful,” she says.

AW20 MAKE-UP TRENDS

Nguyen Grealis talks through the three key trends for the season ahead

1 Playfulness

“We’re in a new era where everything is broken up and coming back again,” says Nguyen Grealis. There’s a nod to all the different eras, but with a twist. “You’re getting an eyeliner, but it’s a broken eyeliner; you’re getting a brow, but it’s a broken brow,” she says. “Everything is a more playful and imperfect.”

2 Individuality

Models are no longer being prescribed a set look. “Artists are choosing their models then making a point of who that person is, and the make-up is just an add-on accessory,” she says. “In the past, you’ve had ‘just nude’ or ‘just a red lip’, but the trend is that everyone is doing individual looks; it’s all about diversity.”

3 See-through skin

“The emphasis backstage is on understanding the skin and making it flawless without too much make-up,” she says. Thanks to innovations in skincare product formulas, Nguyen Grealis says this is becoming easier to achieve. “We’re seeing a lot more see-through skin, more freckles and a more lived-in look,” she adds. Nguyen Grealis’ team used BeautyLab skincare and Mii Cosmetics to create the glowing skin backstage.