Kevyn Aucoin Should be at the Met Gala
The larger than-life-lore of Legend Kevyn Aucoin
Last month I went to Housing Works and found a book called Making Faces by the legendary makeup artist Kevyn Aucoin.
Flipping through, I was enamored with the images of luxurious cat eyes, sumptuous red lips, Shalom Harlow’s punk mug, Kate Moss’ sultry Biba, Tina Turner’s divine pout and a damn co-sign foreword from the OG Miss Gena Rowlands.
After standing in the same spot for 15 minutes in Housing Works the book became quite heavy in my hand as the realization dawned on me: I was holding the makeup bible! And who responsible but the infamous Kevyn Aucoin.
You might know Kevyn the way I did - from his quick Sex and the City cameo in Season 4, Episode 2 The Real Me where this epic dialogue between him and Carrie ensues:
So this was my foray into Kevyn’s work. And you damn believe I understand his last sentence. Don’t worry you’re going to look fabulous. Because that is just what he did.
I quickly found a streamable movie to research more about Kevyn’s intriguing life. This documentary, Larger Than Life: The Kevyn Aucoin Story (2018), is a rich portrait of Kevyn’s life as a talented rising make-up star who started as an adopted Streisand-loving young gay man from Shreveport, Lousiana.
The Kevin-lore continues. This man was a giant genius! Literally. Kevyn stood 6’4 and if you know anything about makeup it is a craft of crouching. It takes so much time and wrist control to perfectly apply a face. One can only IMAGINE the physical TOLL this took on Kevyn’s long frame. Later in life, Kevyn would learn that he even suffered from acromegaly, a very sinister disease in adults that causes the pituitary gland to make too much growth hormone. The irony remains: as Kevyn’s large empire grew, so too did his body in an act of betrayal.
There was no glamazon that Kevyn didn’t touch. He understood these women on a spiritual level and his trust was shown through their allegiance. His longstanding friends and regulars were icons like Whitney Houston, Cher, Tina effin Turner and Gena Rowlands.
I myself loved Kevyn’s pictures with my favorite girl Miss Christy T. And I nearly teared at Kevyn’s account of his first time meeting his childhood idol, Barbara Streisand. His sheer nerves, the slight quiver in his voice. There is something so raw about his love for his hero who he gets to meet and make-up.
Cher offers many interviews throughout the film. It is clear that her and Kevyn were very close, with a sibling-like level of banter between them. In a somber moment, Cher reveals speaking to Kevyn regarding his painkiller abuse due to his chronic pain. Cher comes from love. You can tell they had a beautiful, honest friendship.
I feel very lucky to engage with Kevyn’s work. We lost a master. I see the stroke of his brush in the work of many Make Up Artists now thriving today. Paging through Making Faces, you feel Kevyn’s obsession with his craft. We see him this way from such a young age, focused, eager to make up as many family members as possible, determined to no end. I come to understand his demand for perfection as a need for control. To some degree, we can sometimes all relate to this: when our outside world is messy, we can seek to control the inside. We perfect the thing we can. To Kevyn, this was makeup.
Kevyn worked tirelessly to craft the perfect face on his clients. He would labor, crouch, bend and cause hour delays on set due to his meticulousness and effort. He needed his work to be held to the highest standard. To the dismay of his tall frame, his skill required flawlessness. He polished our girls to perfection.
Kevyn’s spirit is in so many references that are tossed around like candy wrappers these days. But know, through a gander on Pinterest, that that is a Kevyn lip. An Aucoin contour. A Kevyn eye. These strokes have became canon. His touch is everywhere.
Dear Kevyn,
You are missed. If it were up to me, you’d be at the Met Gala ascending steps with the stars you make up. Your legacy is felt and it looms as large as you. An artist. A master technician. A friend to many. To Kevyn, Happy May.
