He’s the brains behind one of most covetable cosmetics brands, but François nars’s photography is proving just as visionary as his makeup

philosophy. In this portfolio, shot exclusively for BAZAAR, he captures the beauty behind this season’s love affair with gothic romance

Prada dress, $2490, gloves, $3520, and brooches, from

top, $440, $1030 and $610; Martine & Juan hat; Piers Atkinson floral piece (worn under chin), both

price on application. Styled by PATTI WILSON.

Giamba dress; Martine & Juan hat; Apatico neckpiece, all price on

application.

Dolce & Gabbana dress; Delpozo skirt (worn

underneath), both price on application; Anya Caliendo hat, $1250;

Jennifer Behr veil, $245; Piers Atkinson floral

collar, $628; Giamba boots, price on application.

Burberry Prorsum dress; Giambattista Valli boots, both price on application;

Martine & Juan hat, $470; Jennifer Behr veil, $245; Les Cinq gloves, $567; Miriam Haskell necklaces and rings,

all price on application.

Roberto Cavalli pants-suit, $7505; Mordekai by Ken

Borochov headpiece, $2800; Gasoline Glamour gloves and sunglasses; Erickson Beamon

rings, all price on application; Vickisarge earrings, $147; Miriam Haskell necklace,

price on application.

Gucci dress, $5740; Francesco Ballestrazzi floral hood; Jennifer Behr floral

veil; Les Cinq gloves, $567; Erickson Beamon rings, all price on application. Opposite page: Simone

Rocha dress, $3800, and shirtdress, $3585; Piers Atkinson hat; Jennifer

Behr veil, $505; Gasoline Glamour gloves; Erickson Beamon rings, all price

on application.

T

H E I M

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hen a frustrated makeup artist called François Nars launched his beauty collection of 12 highly pigmented lipsticks in Barneys New York back in 1994, he couldn’t have expected it to catapult him to where he is today. And as much as he doubtless appreciates being labelled

one of fashion’s most influential makeup artists, to do so is essentially an injustice. Because there’s so much more to the story …

The 56-year-old New York-based Frenchman is still creating beauty, only more often than not these days it’s through the lens of a camera rather than a makeup brush. He now has four published photography books (X-Ray from 1999; Nars 15x15, 2009; Makeup Your Mind: Express Yourself, 2011; and Tahiti: Faery Lands, 2013), and his portfolio encompasses everything from Tahitian landscapes to cosmetics campaigns and fashion shoots. You’d expect the man to be as assured as the legends — including Richard Avedon, Irving Penn, Steven Meisel and Bruce Weber — with whom he has collaborated during the past three decades, in a sort of university of creative osmosis. So it’s surprising to hear genuine relief in his voice when I compliment him on his latest shoot for BAZAAR. “I’m so glad,” he sighs. “Over the years, I’ve become more comfortable taking pictures and getting faster. And people now tell me, ‘You’re getting really amazing,’” he admits, pausing as if he still needs to convince himself.

Perhaps his unease stems from the fact he’s never had any formal photographic training. After growing up in the South of France fascinated by Hollywood and Italian cinema, Nars moved to Paris to attend its famed Carita makeup school. With his signa-ture makeup look — strong, bold colour — he developed a repu-tation in the ’80s fashion scene that saw him forge a dream team with photographer Steven Meisel, hair guru Oribe and super-models including Linda Evangelista and Naomi Campbell. Exasperated by the limitations of the makeup tools available at the time, he launched his own eponymous collection, which was purchased in 2000 by Shisiedo Group; he remains creative director of the line. The proceeds of the sale bought him a private island, Motu Tané in French Polynesia (yours to rent for about $38,000 per night, should you desire). In semi-retirement mode, he’d fleet-ingly return to New York for his Nars Cosmetics commitments and the occasional makeup director’s gig backstage at the fashion shows of his friend Marc Jacobs.

At first, Nars’s photography skills were honed out of necessity more than artistic ambition. “When I started the brand and needed to shoot campaigns, I didn’t have the finances to hire a top ‘star’ photographer, so basically I had to be the one to take the pictures,” he explains. “I’d worked on shoots doing makeup for amazing photographers and learnt from them. It was the best school I could have ever attended.” While today it may be all about post-production, working as a makeup artist in the late ’70s

and early ’80s meant digital retouching wasn’t an option. “Photographers loved me because I was a real perfectionist and didn’t apply too much foundation, so the skin looked fresh. It’s sad there’s now so much retouching. I still work so only limited touch-ups are required,” Nars says.

His vision of beauty also remains relatively unchanged. “Beautiful, for me, is not necessarily what a lot of people [see as] beautiful: the perfect nose, the perfect eyes, the perfect lips ... What makes someone beautiful is almost the ‘wrong’ things. A stronger nose, a large forehead, thin lips. I’m always looking for women with character, personality, a certain charisma and different beauty.” He thinks this stems from his childhood. “As a young boy, I loved watching 1950s Italian films where directors like Fellini cast striking actors. I also loved the work of the director [Josef] von Sternberg, who used actresses like Garbo and Dietrich, and the way light and makeup was used on their faces. It’s a different type of beauty to the standard Barbie type. That’s what inspires me.”

It’s clear he’s drawn to strength (this is a makeup mogul who made a mint from his flair with audacious colour, after all), but Nars insists there’s always softness in his pictures. “In my upcoming book [released in 2016] you’ll see a lot of strong characters — a portfolio of 40 actors, dancers, athletes, designers and singers. Some images will be striking and extravagant. Others will be simple, makeup-free portraits. But my main concern is to always make them look good. I avoid ugly, disturbing and wild. It’s about balance. If the woman has strong makeup, I ask them for a soft expression.”

Nars has a list of firm favourites when it comes to the idiosyn-cratic beauties he uses in his campaigns: Daphne Guinness, Tilda Swinton, Charlotte Rampling and Erin O’Connor. But his all-time pick is ’60s icon Veruschka. “She was so incredible because she loved to be photographed. To be a good model you have to love yourself and love being photographed. You also have to be photogenic, regardless of how good looking you are. I know beau-tiful girls who look like nothing in front of a camera. You have to be able to move, understand the clothes, understand the makeup and hair, and understand the character the photographer is trying to capture. Unfortunately, many models don’t enjoy it. Most of the models today are disposable. Almost like Kleenex!”

One rising star Nars often works with is 24-year-old Russian model/actor/photographer Daria Strokous, who stars in the port-folio on these pages. Styled by Patti Wilson, with whom Nars has collaborated for nearly two decades, the images have a static-por-trait feel — a departure from Nars’s usual celebration of movement — born out of a desire to give each shot the character of a painting. “The clothes have an almost vintage feel, so I felt a neutral face balanced the abundance of it. No strong eye colours or lipstick shades — just glowing skin. That’s what gives each image modernity and keeps things fresh,” says Nars. “What interests me here is her character. That’s what true beauty is.” – Eugenie Kelly

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H A R PE R S B A Z A A R . C O M . AU September 2015202

Alexander McQueen dress, $14,173; Jennifer Behr veil,

$976; Ashley Lloyd headpiece; Gasoline Glamour gloves;

Miriam Haskell necklaces and ring, all price on application.

All prices approximate. Model: Daria Strokous. Hair by Didier Malige; makeup by Lena Koro. All makeup: Nars Cosmetics. On skin: All Day Luminous

Weightless Foundation; Radiant Creamy Concealer. On cheeks:

Copacabana Illuminator; Dual-Intensity Blush

in Jubilation and Adoration. On eyes: St. Paul De Vence

Duo Eyeshadow; Eyeshadow in Blondie; Velvet Shadow Stick in Hollywoodland; Audacious Mascara. On lips: Lip Gloss in Guyane. See Buylines for

details and stockists.