The Radical Makeup Artist Behind Tom Ford’s Extrême Makeup Collection
Last week, Tom Ford introduced a third pillar to his beauty world, the Extrême Collection. It’s the fruits of his first collaboration with British makeup artist Isamaya Ffrench, who was hired in 2016 as creative artist consultant. (There’s a lipstick named after her in the most recent Boys & Girls collection.)
Ffrench’s artistry challenges typical notions of beauty and her work is fascinating to behold. She has transformed Zendaya into an elderly woman for CR Fashion Book, created runway looks that look straight out of Mad Max, and has covered entire faces with graffiti for editorial shoots in i-D Magazine. She’s basically the polar opposite of Charlotte Tilbury, who ironically is the one who helped Ford conceive his original makeup range that came out in 2011.
Obviously Ffrench’s take is not for the faint-hearted and colour-phobic. There’s four lash and brow tints in cray colours like magenta and cobalt (worn by model Imari Karanja in the ad campaign) and 20 eyeshadows that are meant to look like “melted metal” in two finishes: micronized glitter which gives more a fairy dust effect and a foil finish that is pure metallic pigment.
Check out the complete collection below:
The Radical Makeup Artist Behind Tom Ford’s Extrême Makeup Collection
Tom Ford Lash and Brow Tint in "TFX21"
($64, Holt Renfrew)
Lesa Hannah was on staff at FASHION for 18 years (2001-2019) working in the beauty department. She's also written for Elle Canada, The Kit, The Toronto Star, The Globe & Mail, Forbes Vetted, Canadian Business, NUVO, Stereogum, GQ and Vanity Fair.
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