How has your relationship with beauty evolved throughout your career?
As I age and mature, I feel more connected to my unique traits that I might once have tried to hide or alter to fit a certain beauty standard. I’m now embracing the qualities that make me me. I’m definitely getting weirder too. Which I love.

Are there small rituals or habits that help you connect with your artistry?

I feel most connected to my artistry when I’m just living my life. Whenever I try to force it, things don’t feel right, so I’m learning to let my own experiences shape my art and let inspiration come naturally. I love a good Pinterest board, and I try to stay educated in fashion and beauty, especially in culture and history,  as I think it makes me a more well-rounded artist when I understand where or why I’m doing something.

What do you want people to feel from your work?

I hope people feel inspired to be themselves. With social media being so prevalent in society today, I think it’s important not to get too swept up in the herd mentality of it all. I hope people look at my work and are reminded of their own free will to be experimental and playful in their everyday lives and through their own self-expression.

What is something beautiful that happened to you in your career?

I think every opportunity I’ve had in my career has been beautiful. I’ve been lucky enough to walk runways and move my life across the world, which I’m so eternally grateful for. Coming from such a small town in the UK and not being dealt the best cards to succeed from the start has made every success feel so meaningful. Just being able to live off my art is the biggest luxury to me.

What shaped your aesthetic vision?

I think my aesthetic vision is heavily influenced by the ’70s punk scene in London. The general concept of rebellion and being unapologetically myself is deeply inspired by the energy of that time, and pioneers like Vivienne Westwood really motivate me to embrace my inner rebel, however that may look. I also think my own life experiences and hardships have helped fuel that sense of angst, and creating is a really fun way for me to release it in a healthy, creative way.

What led you to beauty, and what made you stay?

I started getting into beauty and makeup during high school. I was taking a photography GCSE and became obsessed with portrait photography. I wanted the images to feel cooler or convey a certain mood, so I started experimenting with cheap makeup palettes from eBay or Amazon. I would paint on my best friends’ faces and take photos, and from there, I was hooked. I was a little stumped trying to figure out why I’ve stayed, because the beauty industry changes so drastically. Sometimes I sit there and think, „Surely everything has been done,  what else can I really do here?“ But I think I stay for the expression of it all and to keep showcasing the versatility of beauty. What I’ve really enjoyed recently is how makeup has become more of an add-on for me –  something that helps me tell a story within a wider project, like a headpiece or outfit. It feels more conceptual than ever before, and I love that.

Do you intuitively, conceptually, or emotionally approach a new project?

I’d say I use a mix of all three. I rely heavily on intuition and emotion to guide me when starting a new project. Sometimes I’ll have three or four projects lined up, and then I get one idea that makes me think, “Wow, I have to do this right now” and suddenly that takes over everything. I also like to play with concepts or ideas from culture or history that I can reinterpret in my own way. It really depends on my current mood or vibe, and I just go with what feels right in the moment without overthinking it too much. I keep all my ideas written and drawn in a journal so that when I’m feeling less inspired, I can flip through and find something to bring to life.

Do you find yourself leaning more toward perfection, or embracing imperfection?

At heart, I’m a massive perfectionist  and I kind of hate it. I feel like most artists are like this at their core. It’s my best and worst trait, so I often have to ground myself in imperfection and let go of expectations, both from myself and others. Ten times out of ten, my best work is the stuff I don’t overthink. So, I’d say I’m a recovering perfectionist trying my hardest to embrace imperfection, but it’s always an ebb-and-flow kind of thing.

Headpieces are often a striking part of your makeup creations. What do they add to the story you want each look to tell?

I actually think my headpieces are slowly becoming the story in their own right. They’re so fun to create, and I usually find myself asking, “How can the makeup add to the story I want to tell with the headpiece?” They pretty much inspire the whole show at the moment, and it’s been so inspiring and freeing to work in this new way. What I’ve enjoyed most about this shift is that it takes a makeup look from being facially motivated to becoming full-body art: What clothing do I wear? What background do I use? I feel more like a creative director working on a campaign shoot, bringing an idea into a full story on my own body. It’s been incredibly fulfilling to merge my beauty and fashion brains, bringing all of my skills and abilities together into one final video or photoshoot.

PHOTOS/TALENT: Christopher Grave
EDITOR/INTERVIEW: Lotte Willhöft