Antonio Quatromani: “I draw inspiration from artists”

The article was first published in Makeup&YOU Professional magazine.

People often come to the world of makeup from different fields. How did your passion for the world of beauty begin? I am first and foremost the son of an artist. Since childhood I got used to colors, aesthetics were not alien to me. I used to work in tourism and completed courses as a tourist escort. This continued until I came to America. It was there that I liked the work of a makeup artist; I studied this specialty for three years. He returned to Italy as a specialist and was already here directly confronted with work. I was lucky to meet such a great makeup artist as Diego Dalla Palma, with whom I continued my experience. In 1994, he began working at the Cinecitta film studio, one of the most famous film studios in Europe. From 1994 to 2008 he also collaborated with the Chanel brand. But now I again give preference to Cinecitta and work only with this brand. I love their products because they contain natural, natural ingredients and are suitable for all skin types. Each makeup artist has several roles in their field of work. This could be participation in championships, teaching, master classes, working with artists or in films, private clients. What does your professional life consist of now? I conduct master classes, in addition to this I work with the theater. The shooting of a film about Versace is about to begin, and I am involved in its production. There are two famous Italian actresses with whom I work in the theater. I also travel a lot with my master classes; I recently conducted training in Bishkek, London and Miami. You have visited different parts of the world, where you have your own culture and different external types. Are the global makeup trends in those places different from the fashion trends in Italy? Italy differs from other countries in that most makeup artists here want to highlight the natural beauty of a woman. Therefore, they use a fairly light, natural, natural makeup. In America there is heavier makeup. The colors in India are too bright. What distinguishes Italian makeup artists from others is their naturalness. You are talking about natural makeup, but Italians by nature are very expressive and emotional. Don't you really want to create something bright and crazy? The point is not that makeup should be light, but that its primary task is to highlight the natural female beauty. For example, I look at a woman and realize that she has very beautiful eyes. In this case, you just need to emphasize their depth - so that it looks natural. Every person has something that truly sets them apart from others. A makeup artist should pay attention to exactly this - the already existing beauty. Creativity is wonderful, and so is realizing your creative desires, but there is always a commercial side. In Ukraine, makeup artists mostly earn money from master classes or private clients, such as weddings. What brings the main income to makeup artists in Italy? In Italy it’s exactly the same as in Ukraine: if a makeup artist is a freelance artist, then he needs to look for work himself. In the same way, he organizes master classes and looks for some projects. You can actually earn good money in one month, and then be left without a salary the next month. If a makeup artist works for top companies, the salaries are good. But in order to find a job with those well-known companies that can pay, you need to have a decent professional level. You have worked with many famous Italian actors and others. Who was the most memorable collaboration with you and why? In 2010 in Monte Carlo I worked with Jennifer Lopez. When I walked into her dressing room, the first thing she asked was to open my suitcase to see what products I was using. When I opened it and showed it, she calmed down. For some reason, this is exactly how Jennifer stood out to me. How often do your clients' vision of the final image differ from the way you envision it? Do you convince the client or agree with him? Applying makeup occurs literally at three points: the idea arises in the head, then goes to the heart and from the heart to the hand that draws. When working with a client, you need to understand what he wants and be on the same wavelength with him in order to bring the image to life as much as possible. I often make concessions because it is very important for the client himself to look the way he wants. But if the case is absolutely critical, I can argue. We recently shot a film whose plot takes place in the 15th century, and, of course, the makeup had to correspond to that time. In the 15th century, they did not use cosmetics - only powder and a little blush. However, one actress wanted modern makeup, which is completely inappropriate for the time. I had to turn to the director for help, who managed to convince the actress. What is your creative dream? Perhaps this is a collaboration with some famous actor whom you have long admired, the opening of your own school of writing? Of course, every person should have a dream, and I have one too. I want to create my own line of cosmetics. My last name sounds very good - Quatro Mani. Which means “four hands” in Italian. Imagine: cosmetics that are applied not with two hands, but with four! Sounds very tempting! You are currently working with the Cinecitta brand, and you are satisfied with its quality. If you start creating your own brand, will you borrow any characteristics from Cinecitta? Maybe a rich range of colors or resistance to high and low temperatures? For me, the most important thing when creating my own line is professionalism. What I like most about Cinecitta are the foundations, which you then apply makeup on. I think I will take some of their characteristics as the basis for my line. I heard that during filming at very low temperatures, Cinecitta was the only cosmetic that did not freeze, and at very high temperatures it did not run. During your time working with Cinecitta, did you have any extreme shooting experiences when such durability of the product was demonstrated? Yes, I have experience working with high temperatures. In India it was 40 degrees hot, in Dubai it was generally 50 degrees hot. But everything remained perfect: the makeup I created did not blur under these conditions. In general, in what extreme conditions have you worked? At the Sanremo music festival, the makeup artists were on the first floor of a five-story building, the artists who needed to be groomed were on the fourth and fifth. And several times, with a huge and heavy suitcase, I had to climb to the fourth and fifth floors on foot, because the building did not have an elevator. Fashion is becoming a broader concept every year. There are a lot of fashion trends, particularly in makeup, now. How different are fashion trends in Italy from fashion trends in the world? What's fashionable in Italy now? Makeup artists put aside the oval face. If earlier they emphasized the oval of the face, now they emphasize parts of the face, which is divided into four parts. This technique is called strobing. The “natural lips” trend is still relevant - when the lips are practically left untouched, but they emphasize the eyes in order to make the look and eye color more expressive. What is your opinion on men's makeup? Men also need makeup on camera. What about in everyday life? Which of the men's makeup do you consider acceptable as a modern man's personal care, and which is clearly too much? I am in favor of highlighting men's eyes and painting men. Even in Ancient Egypt, men emphasized their eyes, that is, they drew arrows and painted eyelashes. Now society is coming to this, and there is nothing wrong with the fact that men can paint their eyes and use some kind of cosmetics. Which of your fellow makeup artists do you admire? Who would you be happy to attend a master class with? You know, I like art, I get inspiration and learn things from artists. Those artists who work on the street, because they literally create a painting in five minutes. When I watch them draw all these lines, I even borrow their technique somewhere. Who are your favorite artists? Do you have favorite eras, favorite directions? I like 17th century artists. I draw myself and always pay attention to makeup artists and artists who paint. I drew attention to my colleague Daria Bogatova, who in fact is first and foremost an artist. What would you wish for the readers of Makeup&YOU Professional magazine? First of all, I wish peace to the whole world, and the most important thing, of course, is that women should always be beautiful and maintain this beauty.