SYMPHONY OF Colour
The autumn make-up trends are like a musical score: the notes are colours and shapes that blend into an orchestra of iconic looks. Together they take us on a stylistic journey through time. The 70s kick things off, the 90s bring things to a close.
What fashion is usually deprived of, making use of history style icons, is putting makeup trends in a whole new light this autumn. From Versace to Dolce&gabbana, they are moving up and down the style ladder this season. One could almost think that the bitter loss of art and culture last year not only left traces of gloom and humility, but also inspired many designers to perform at their artistic best - borne by the number one source of inspiration: music. With a bang, the catwalk looks open a melody of colours, inspired by the most exciting music eras in history - a tactful journey through time that honours all those styles that caused a sensation back then and shaped entire generations. Even half a century after their bloom, they still manifest their validity and impact. Leading the way is a harmonious quartet of four different Prêt-à-porter looks that take us into the past and, style note by style note, present a rhythmic concert of the most beautiful autumn shades.
Glamour girls
When the art figure Ziggy Stardust made her appearance on stage, it was clear
that classic gender roles were passé. The combination of feminine glitter costumes and androgynous make-up in the early 1970s by stars like David Bowie revolutionised the prevailing style and became the distinguishing feature of glam rock, which was born in London. The fusion of masculine and feminine style traits, which had previously been kept very separate, was a new arrangement: gender norms were broken down culturally as well as stylistically - an aesthetic that today, as then, causes a sensation and at the same time provides absolute glamour. Futuristic touches dominated the make-up and helped the extraordinary fashion looks to achieve even more star potential. This year’s Versace autumn make-up, which caused a splash on the Milan catwalk, uses precisely this style ingredient: thickly drawn eyeliners on the eyelids, in XXL size and luminous nuances: from spacy azure to magical magenta. The precisely applied cat-eye shapes play skilfully with geometry and adapt to the individual eye shape with more or less swing, mega or maxi width. With this “graphic wing”, today’s people give in to glam-rock exuberance instead of indulging in minimalism. In accordance with this motto, “more is more”, silver shimmer pigments cleverly dabbed into the inner corner of the eye brighten up the look - “Stardust” as only Ziggy could have staged it. Trained by the masters of the era, the look is otherwise very modest. A naturally dazzling tan smoothed out with the help of balancing CC creams and luminescent powder for delicate matting, nougat-coloured gloss on the lips and a little “pearl glow” dabbed on as a highlighter on the cheekbones round off the iconic star make-up.
Disco era
Chanel’s creative director Virginie Viard amazed her fashion audience with looks resembling those of a nightclub at the Prêtà-porter show. Similar to the legendary Studio 54 in New York, when stars and starlets turned night into day between Eighth Avenue and Broadway in midtown Manhattan. There was partying and dancing - the music genre disco was brought to life thanks to night owls of glamour. As the name suggests, it was all about the groove - on the dance floor as well as in the looks: dresses trimmed with lamé, sequins, and brocade elements fitting the dancing bodies, while dramatic make-up set the trends. In keeping with the Chanel DNA, Viard reinterpreted these style elements on the runway for autumn 2021 in sumptuous, chunky tweed, paired with eyes rimmed with dark kohl and glamorous, glossy laissez-faire hair. A “look du jour” that is just as impressive back then in midtown Manhattan as it is today in the underground club in Paris. As if you had been dancing for hours through the night, this is the effect of the gently smudged kohl placed on the lower and upper eyelids, which is embedded in nude or delicately metallic lids. The skin, on the other hand, shines with Chanel-typical perfection and a velvety matte finish; the lips, which have been given a touch of foundation, are embellished with at most a little shine.
Loud accents
The new wave, also called Post Punk or New Wave, stylised artists like Boy George and thus shaped the legendary colour eccentricity that is still symbolic of the 1980s today. Here, too, people play with gender norms and break them up with drastic stylistic devices such as heavily pigmented (neon) colours, mullet hairstyles, and maxi-brows. Unlike the previously popular glam rock movement, the looks are more aggressive and radiating an infinite power, skilfully mixed with refined rebellion. The designer duo Dolce&gabbana, who normally pay homage to the feminine femme fatale of the Italian Riviera, exceeded the expectations of the fashion elite, who were still very sparsely loaded due to the pandemic, with their bold creations. The make-up element that got the most out of the looks here, however, was a very classic one: lipstick. Defying all expectations, not only in classic red, the colour palette ranged from ostentatious and everyday berry tones out to slightly more artificial blues and even greens. To keep the balance, the brows are strongly emphasised in a broad bar shape to match. If that’s still not enough, you can also use the exaggerated liquid eyeliner and create a superlative eye look à la Boy George with maximum sweep.
Dark tones
The grunge style has already been a popular stylistic device of the most renowned designers in previous seasons. Instead of just highlighting the eyes à la Kurt Cobain of the cult band Nirvana with the help of a smudge kohl, fashion houses such as Etro are using 90s make-up “all over” this season: coming from the creative pen of make-up artist Petros Petrohilos, grunge is now being brought back to the fashion stage as a complete look. We start with a rather one-dimensional, pale complexion. Little bronzer or rouge, just a little contouring powder at the temples, which makes the nude make-up slightly more precise. The real make-up art, however, is almost hidden in the details: instead of bold blackrimmed eyes with kohl, Petrohilos used matte and shimmering tones, from grey to green to anthracite, to create smokey eyes, meticulously applied along the lash line. On the upper eyelid, metallic shades are blended more generously to give the look even more depth. The grand finale is made with deep black mascara and a touch of nude lipstick, which adds a little lightness to the otherwise very grim make-up. A make-up look that rounds off the style-defining quartet for the coming season with mesmerising 90s flair.