In the Open Air
Hermès Beauty introduces Plein Air, its first collection of face products with a focus on elevating skin’s natural glow
When Hermès made its foray into the realm of beauty two years ago, it chose to focus on the artistic impression that make-up leaves on both the wearer and its audience. “Beauty is a gesture,” it proclaimed at the time. This year, that artistic gesture takes its place en plein air as the French maison zooms in on the complexion.
Artists have long exalted the benefits of the great outdoors for the glow that natural light bestows on their subjects, and the new Hermès Beauty Plein Air collection conveys the same refreshing idea of “beauty in the open air” through a range of complexion products. Comprising a face balm, two powders, a powder brush and blotting papers, the fourth chapter of Hermès Beauty is all about enhancing your skin without masking your natural beauty.
A make-up and skincare hybrid, the pigmented complexion balm, which has a creamy but light texture, brings the full luminosity of a Raphaelite painting to your skin once it is blended in. Designed to suit all skin types, it comes in 12 shades—admittedly not a lot by today’s standards, but the stroke of genius is that each one adapts to two or three skin tones, making this a much more inclusive colour range than it seems.
The two powders, meanwhile, further work to impart radiance to your skin. Though both are formulated with similar ingredients—among other things, white mulberry extract and emollients—the silky Radiant Glow Powder, in a universal golden pink hue, acts as a highlighter to illuminate your best features, while the translucent Radiant Matte Powder works to mattify the skin, giving the overall effect of a Renaissance-era cherub.
Of course, an artist is nothing without her tools and Pierre Hardy, the creative mind behind the Hermès Beauty objects, has designed an exquisite new brush to elevate the powder application experience. With a wooden handle lacquered in three colours, the brush boasts ultra-soft natural goat hair fibres and is hand assembled by a French brush maker. Luxurious indeed.
Completing the Plein Air collection are blotting papers made from, among other materials, soft kozo fibres from the paper mulberry tree. In Chinese art, the tree made for the best paper for calligraphy and ink drawings due to its unparalleled absorbency. Taking a leaf from the Eastern masters, Hermès’s version, which has a luxuriously silky feel, is meant to be patted over the forehead, nose or chin to absorb shine without adding any powder. In true Hermès fashion, the basic skin tool is elevated with tiny H monograms and comes packed in the iconic Hermès orange box.