We recently connected with Angelia Guthrie and have shared our conversation below.

Angelia, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I got into doing makeup from a sideways path. I was working in film and theatre as a costume and wardrobe person with aspirations of being a fashion designer. I have a fine art background and as a painter it was a natural fit. I started working in the wardrobe department of film productions. occasionally the makeup department needed extra help and I began helping them and learning from those artists. I then started doing makeup and working as a part of the makeup crew. Eventually, migrated from film into print and now 30 years later my main career has been as a makeup artist. I am a creative and artistic thinker and combining the knowledge of working with the proper tools helped me refine my craft. I did go to Makeup School in Los Angeles and it was a very affirming experience and I felt much more confident with that formal training. I am often asked how to become a makeup artist and my advice is to get a base of education on makeup technique and then find the best makeup artist You can and go apprentice them and that will be a better learning experience than anything. It also is very important to learn lighting and set etiquette . One the the most important skills to have is people skills. Real life experience is the best thing for learning this particular skill set. If someone is in an area where they do not have access to working in a hands on environment or apprenticeship, then I would say get a job at a makeup counter and do makeup on as many different people as possible to learn the shapes and textures and differences in faces.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

As a child, I sat at the table everyday with my Mom as she got ready for work. while she did her makeup. She was a bit of a beauty queen and I would watch her do her perfect cat eye liner with amazement. I always dreamed of living my life as an artist and I often think of how lucky I am that the dream came true. I was never into wearing makeup myself but I loved the process of creating a makeup look for someone else. Maybe that time with my Mom subconsciously led me to path of makeup as my art form. I am a very social person and I really love the ‘people’ part of my job as well . I love a collaboration and problem solving and each job is like a creative puzzle that I get to put together. Makeup for me is where art and commerce meet. I particularly love working with the art directors to help bring their vision to life. I really thrive in a creative environment where we have a vision but can also be a little spontaneous and in the moment . When I first started as a makeup artist, I also had to learn to do hair. At first it was a bit intimidation but as soon as I started looking at hair as a sculpture, it helped me find my way to being good with hair. Now I enjoy hair as much as makeup. In my industry it is important to stay current in style and trend and also translate that through the lens of each client and their particular ask. That takes experience. My business is me and my artistry. I have had a rich and exciting career working on incredibly creative projects and doing celebrities makeup and even winning an award, but my favorite part is simply collaborating with good people and watching our vision come life.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

When I started in the business over 30 years ago things were very different in terms of technology. Back then, we didn’t have computers , digital film or cell phones. We had to use a light meter and take a polaroid to make sure to see what the shot will look like. We didn’t have moniters to watch during the shoot so I would have to stand directly behind the photographer to see their angle and know what to fix on set. It was a very different experience of working and learning without the technology we have today. We had to prepare and have everything in place before we shot film, and that was a type of training I am so grateful for. I had to adapt to a digital world from an analog world and it wasn’t always easy. I am not tech but I am pretty proficient with digital files and social media. it is amazing the immediacy we now have and as a visual person, I love that. It helps me be even better at my job.

Contact Info:

• Website: angeliamakeup.com
• Instagram: @angeliamakeup
• Facebook: Angeliamakeup
• Linkedin: Angelia Guthrie

Image Credits
Ross Anderrsson Ross Anderrsson John Guthrie Aaron Rice Aaron Rice