Ilia Beauty Partners With Art Gallery Tappan Collective While Unveiling New Eye Launch
● The brand has commissioned three artists — Brianna Lance, Satsuki Shibuya and Jaimie Milner — to reimagine the beauty item.
Ilia Beauty is tapping into the art scene as it introduces a new launch coming next year, the Eye Stylus Shadow Stick.
Founder Sasha Plavsic is celebrating artistry while giving back. The brand has commissioned three artists — Brianna Lance, Satsuki Shibuya and Jaimie
Milner — to reimagine the beauty item in partnership with Tappan Collective.
“I really love the artists that they find and how they showcase them. I think they do beautiful storytelling,” Plavsic said of Chelsea Neman Nassib's gallery, which began as an online platform before opening its first space in Los Angeles on Melrose Avenue.
The artwork — two paintings and a photograph — will be auctioned, with proceeds benefiting Heart of Los Angeles' art program, which provides after-school academics and activities for underserved kids.
“I've always had an appreciation for design and art,” said Plavsic.
Her late father was an architect, she explained, and would often take her on museum visits during their international travels. “I was really lucky when he was alive to have that exposure.”
Plavsic, originally from Vancouver, is making her love of art known. She's been inspired by the craft since day one, she said. (Founded in 2011, Ilia Beauty was acquired by Famille C, the owner of French cosmetics group Clarins, a decade later.)
“If I didn't go and explore creativity, or go after what I found really resonated with me, writing and design, I wouldn't be where I am today,” she said of her early years.
Art is a brand pillar, she added: “A lot of the design in the brand and everything is influenced by art. And so, it was really important to start looking at where we can find opportunities there.”
She became familiar with Tappan Collective after purchasing a piece by Shibuya.
“She does beautiful watercolor,” said Plavsic. “And a lot of the tones that are reflected in her work and even in Brianna Lance, who does more abstract surrealist, I would say are reflective of some of the tones we have in our launch for Eye Stylus. And that was inspired by art.”
The shadow sticks, which have an angled tip, take influence from Baroque paintings, including Johannes Vermeer's “Girl with a Pearl Earring” painting.
“We pulled shades from there,” said Plavsic. “A lot of the greens that you see are coming from that painting. The texture, we felt like it really resembled the finish of an oil painting.”
They can be layered, she went on, “You can have little accents and pops of color similar to how you would build a painting.”
Priced at $32, the sticks come in 20 shades and two finishes, both matte and shimmer. They're formulated with “Upcycled Grape Extract,” sourced from Italy, which helps reduces fine lines over time, according to the brand.
“To me, what's really important, at least in just this collaboration, is to feature up-and-coming artists and have them have a moment to celebrate their work and have a bit of a voice out there,” said Plavsic.
The founder has more releases coming out next year, she revealed, including a face milk.
“There is a couple other face milks on the market, but ours we feel is pretty different in texture…It's very dense but totally light and refreshing on the skin,” she said, adding, “There's a huge launch coming in the back half of spring which we've been working on for a while and there will be a lot of shades.”