MAC Archives - Page 4 of 7 - Makeup Museum: Where Cosmetics & Art Intersect

This is one of the strangest collections from MAC yet and I'm still not quite sure what to make of the concept behind it. Won't you join me for a little musing?

Shop MAC/Cook MAC is a small-ish collection – not as large as previous February collections (see Hello Kitty, Barbie, Fafi), and features bright spring colors packaged in girly hues with some gingham thrown in.

(images from theshadesofu.com)

My first thought when I saw the promo image and the collection title was "WTF is this, Stepford Wives on acid?"

(image from maccosmetics.com)

All I could think about was the grocery store scene in The Stepford Wives, especially after seeing this image from the invitations to the private promotional events at MAC stores.

(image from specktra.net)

Stills from The Stepford Wives (2004):

(image from listal.com)

(image from smh.com.au)

It gets even weirder – apparently at the promotional events they had Shop MAC/Cook MAC rubber gloves, emblazoned with the words "Domestic Goddess!" (with a rhinestone serving as the exclamation point), along with cleaning sponges, as giveaways to the lucky invitees. There was also a tote bag.

MAC's description didn't help me much in wrapping my head around the theme. "Shop 'til you drop with a tongue-in-cheek collection that elevates the everyday into the extraordinary…Gourmet glamour is here. Look delicious while you whip it up! Our recipe for kitchen kouture is here in savoury shades for Eyes and Lips. Dishy Nail Lacquers, too. Bon appétit!" Okay, yes, tongue-in-cheek for sure, but I'm still confused. Why make the main promo image so creepy? MAC's ads are usually pretty avant-garde, and I get the idea that this was meant to be kitschy and fun, not actually a veiled insinuation that women should go back in time and stick to domestic chores while being dressed to the nines. But having a bunch of spaced-out, unsmiling women taking on activities associated with traditional femininity is odd, especially in the current political climate (at least in the U.S.) As for the giveaways, I think people attending MAC events would have appreciated something besides rubber gloves and sponges (the tote bag is reasonable). It was a good theme – the idea that we've come so far that we can actually poke a little fun at the way things used to be is encouraging – but it wasn't executed as well as it could have been. What I'm trying to say, I suppose, is that the main ad and 2 of the giveaway items didn't sit well with me for reasons I still can't clearly articulate…perhaps, because, the fun that the collection intended becomes lost in objects that represent the drudgery that women had to perform daily, as well as the humorless expressions of the models in the ad. Then again, maybe I am the one who lacks humor. 😉

What say you?

Following in the footsteps of previous fashion collaborations, including Alice + Olivia, Emmanuel Ungaro and Dsquared, this fall MAC teamed up with British designer Gareth Pugh to create a moody but wearable collection.

(image from makeupforlife.net)

(image from vogue.co.uk)

That particular promo image comes from a strange little video for the collection:

I'd say the packaging design is very much in keeping with Pugh's style – black, geometric, a little sci-fi and futuristic.

(image from emcblue.com)

Here's a close-up of the face powder:

(image from sugarsocial.wordpress.com)

Let's take a look at some Pugh's work, shall we? The square with 2 lines criss-crossing it to make triangles appeared in a number of his designs.

Spring 2007:

Fall 2008:

(images from style.com)

The motif is so simple but still manages to make a big statement, even when it's on a nail polish rather than enormous, alien-looking shoulder pads. I wasn't going to buy anything from this collection, but after seeing Pugh's work I think I might. His earlier creations, like the above images, are definitely more theatrical instead of practical. His more recent work is more wearable but still pretty out there and very unique. Once again a makeup company has introduced me to a designer I probably never would have discovered otherwise. 🙂

I REALLY wanted to write something intelligent and meaningful and inspired about the recent MAC/Cindy Sherman collaboration. But since nothing is coming to my feeble brain (or, rather, I feel totally overwhelmed by the task), I will leave you with the promo images instead, plus a link to MoMA's bio of her.

(images from maccosmetics.com)

Please leave your insights in the comments section!

Much like the hoopla it caused around the release of Alice in Wonderland, the makeup industry is having a field day in terms of products for the new Muppets movie. First up is The Balm's Muppet palette:

(image from thebalm.com)

It's pretty cute and I like that they managed to fit most of the Muppets onto one palette, which I'm guessing is no easy feat.

Next is the Miss Piggy collection for MAC, which will be released in November. Oh, Kermie!!

(image from racked.com)

The small collection features a liquid eyeliner, flirty false eyelashes and a pink eye shadow:

(image from glamour.com)

Miss Piggy had quite a bit to say about the collection and her beauty regimen. According to Glamour, in a statement via MAC she said that working with the company to create the collection was very smooth: "Oh I adore collaboration—especially when everyone is there to listen to what I have to say and do exactly what I tell them to…they did all the work while I did all the talking!" As for her daily beauty routine, it's very simple: "At home and on the set, my beauty routine is the same. I sit in a chair while a squadron of stylists, manicurists, cosmetologists, hairologists and so forth hover around and make magic. Then, I open my eyes, look in the mirror and voila…perfection! The advantage of doing this on set is that someone else pays for it." Love it.

That's not all Miss Piggy's been up to, however: she also helped with the creation of OPI nail polishes coming in November:

There will also be glittery polishes:

(images from disneyeveryday.com)

While I'm not a fan of glitter polishes, I do like the names of these – Rainbow Connection and The Fresh Frog of Bel Air are just too cute!

So what do you think? Will you be seeing the Muppets movie and/or buying any of these products?

This is a collection that's right up the Curator's alley! :D Before I start playing the comparison-to-actual-works-of-art-game, here are some blurbs from MAC about it.

"The line between Fine Art & Makeup Art is undeniably blurry…explore illusion with the Op Art Optical Bronzer. A Street Art Eye Shadow personalizes the eye with madcap graffiti & for those who love light & shade, an In The Abstract Highlighter.

"A collection of three M·A·C Artist Powders inspired by the Masters & modern art movements. There’s an op art Optical Bronzer that explores the depth, dimension and sheer illusion of bronze. A Street Art Eye Shadow personalizes the eye with a madcap act of pure graffiti – and for those who love random acts of light and shade, an In The Abstract Highlighter. These palettes empower creation…make some art!"

Let's start with the graffiti palette. "Street Artists challenge art by situating it in non-art contexts…what better location for that than the eye?" Well, there are a million different examples of graffiti art, so it's impossible to say exactly what the inspiration was for this particular design.

With flash:

So in lieu of trying to guess, here's are some examples of New York graffiti (I see the words "New York" and "jungle" in the palette, and New York City is said to be the historical starting point for graffiti):

(image from nytimes.com)

(image from senseslost.com)

You can read more about graffiti art here.

Onto the next palette. "Inspired by Abstract Expressionism, a highlighting powder with a soft pink base, yellow gold lines and mid-tone lavender & pink dots." Gee, do you think they're referencing Jackson Pollock? 😛

With flash:

Obviously it is quite Pollock-esque and most likely Pollock is the direct inspiration for the design, but is it bad that I think it also sorta looks like Andy Warhol's Oxidation Painting (1978)? Maybe it's that the splatters are yellow, maybe I drank too much water, but for some reason this is looking slightly less Pollock and more like, well, someone urinated on it a la Warhol:

(image from arthag.typepad.com)

Anyway.

"Explore the depth, dimension & sheer illusion of Op Art with a bronzer that's sheer, chic & ideal for enhancing skin tone." Okay, MAC. Which op artist does this palette come from?

With flash:

The bent, sharp lines remind me a lot of this work by Victor Vasarely (Berc, 1967):

(image from artnet.com)

Here's a little crash course in Op Art.

So what do you think of this collection? I love it, since it really is the perfect marriage of art and makeup, which is what the Museum is all about. And it's modern art based, which is the Curator's favorite period. 🙂

Just a quick post to point out that the Body Shop inadvertantly copied the honeycomb design from MAC's Naked Honey collection from 2009 for their Honey Bronzing collection. Sigh.

The Body Shop's version:

(image from thebodyshop-usa.com)

MAC Naked Honey powder:

I guess the Body Shop could have used little bees or something instead of a honeycomb, but then that might be seen as copying Guerlain's bee motif. Kinda tough to do an originally designed honey-themed collection these days!

Surf's up! Overall I liked the design for this collection, especially the yellow and grey stripes with a pop of hot pink. (Okay, I love anything yellow and grey, but I do really think it was spot-on for this.) I also liked the white casing – such a refreshing change from MAC's usual black.

(image from maccosmetics.com)

The must-have from the collection was My Paradise blush, if only because it has a pretty shimmery hibiscus on it:

With flash:

I have never gone surfing nor will I ever, but if I did, I'd definitely pack this in my makeup bag. (Yes, I would wear makeup to go surfing!)

I picked up MAC eye shadow in Aqua from their Fashionflower collection. The daisy pattern was just too cheery and fun for me to pass up.

With flash:

I don't really have anything else to say about this, except that I wish MAC would stop using creepy dead-eyed models who look like they're practically getting eaten alive by flowers:

(image from maccosmetics.com)

I wasn't originally going to buy all 4 eye shadows from MAC's Jeanius collection, but convinced myself after realizing I owned jeans in the same colors as the shadows – I can't believe I have white, grey, black and dark blue! Didn't know I liked jeans that much. 🙂

White Jeanius and Diva in Distress:

With flash:

Motorhead and Stovepipe:

With flash:

I was going to do a summary of the history and evolution of jeans as we know them today, but got overwhelmed at the over 22 million Google hits when I typed in "history of denim". Yikes. That task is best left to a fashion professor!

I have to say that I was initially excited about MAC doing a Wonder Woman collection…until I saw the packaging. It was just, well, sad.

(image from nordstrom.com)

I guess I was hoping for something more interesting and not so juvenile and cheap-looking – something that better represented Wonder Woman's character. Says the copy for the collection: "Our Artists work wonders every day – now with the help of one of entertainment history’s most exciting feminist figures…Wonder Woman is the original incarnation of what makes women forever wonderful!…In that same spirit of fantasy and wonder, M∙A∙C creates a vivid collection of accessories that are sure to bring you a sense of feminine infallibility, totally peerless power – you ARE Wonder Woman if you want to be." Additionally, there has been the argument, and I agree with it, that Wonder Woman can be considered a feminist icon. That larger debate is outside the scope of this post, but suffice it to say that the packaging seems to be appealing to children than adults, and doesn't necessarily reflect the more grown-up themes of Wonder Woman's strength and power. MAC could have easily chosen better images and kept basic black packaging (similar to their Hello Kitty collection).

But the outer boxes for the items, along with the tote bag and t-shirt, which I bought for the Museum, were more intriguing. I liked that they brought an actual comic book element into these:

And I think the fold-out I got was the best piece in the whole collection, even though it's not technically part of it and was sent to me with the t-shirt for free!

Now, one simply cannot have a conversation about comic books and their heroes (or in this case, their heroines) without considering the work of pop artist Roy Lichtenstein. At least, I can't. Lichtenstein painted almost identical large-scale copies of sections of comic books.

(Sweet Dreams Baby!, image from popartpal.com)

Whaam!, from 1963, is actually based on an original 1962 DC comic called "All American Men at War":

(image from artchive.com)

I really enjoyed how MAC exaggerated the the Ben-Day dots in the fold-out much like Lichtenstein did in his work.

Thinking of Him, 1963:

(image from globalgallery.com)

Girl with Hair Ribbon, 1965:

(image from reproduction-gallery.com)

So, to summarize, there are many layers of meaning about this collection if you want it to be – it intersects makeup, comic books, feminism and pop art. Works on so many levels!