We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Hannah Lauren Del Rosario a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hannah Lauren, appreciate you joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?
Hannah Lauren, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
My name is Hannah Lauren Del Rosario, and I’m a Filipina makeup artist. I was born and raised in a little town in Jersey to a family full of artists. I grew up surrounded by musicians, dancers, singers, painters – any kind of creative path you can name, there’s probably someone in my family who does it. I thought I was going to be a musician or a fashion designer, but when I was 14 I found a passion for a new art form: makeup.
I grew up drawing and painting so doing makeup didn’t feel much different. I was a theatre kid who went from performing on stage to doing everyone’s makeup backstage, working out of a kit full of makeup from drugstores and dollar stores. I drew face charts for every role and felt such deep excitement/fulfillment that someone trusted me to help bring these characters to life.
If I wasn’t doing shows, I would practice makeup on myself and any friends or family that would let me use their face as a canvas. I honestly had no idea what I was doing – but I knew that I really enjoyed sitting with people, getting to experiment and play with a new art medium, and having whoever sat in my chair feel cared for in a way I’ve never seen before.
I continued doing makeup throughout and after high school, then graduated from Makeup Designory NYC on my 21st birthday. I’m so grateful for the knowledge I gained from going to school for makeup. I became so much more comfortable and confident in my abilities as a makeup artist, but the self doubt started to creep in once I left school. I wasn’t just practicing anymore and I was scared I had wasted all this time on something that I was never going to be able to do professionally. But I pushed through those doubts and set a goal of booking 22 makeup gigs for my first year of working full time as an educated makeup artist: 21 for my age plus 1 for funsies. I ended up booking 115.
Nowadays I specialize in editorial, beauty, film, and commercial makeup. My work has been published in Mob Journal, Local Wolves, Falcon Magazine, and Harper’s Bazaar Vietnam. I’ve worked for brands I never thought I’d get to work for like r.e.m. beauty, On Running, Megan O’Cain, and Kate Spade.
My favorite kind of work is when I get to run wild with creative expression. I love using small gems, dried flowers, and lots of color. I’ve been wearing the same lipstick since I was 15 and it’s probably the step of my own makeup routine that I’m the most obsessive about – so getting a perfectly shaped lip is at the very top of my to do list for every makeup look!
After nine years of working as a makeup artist I’m happy to say I feel the same sense of fulfillment from caring for people in my chair. I still get so excited planning out each look like I did when I was a kid. The commuting from Jersey feels like work, but the actual creative work never does. I’m so grateful for every opportunity that has come my way and the incredible people I’ve met through this job.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
The most rewarding part of being an artist is getting to step back and admire the finished project. The first fashion show I was on the makeup team for was Kim Shui SS22. I’ll never forget the moment right before the models started to walk. You could see the lights and hear the music blasting from backstage. I just stood back in awe as the entire team watched each model walk down the runway on the monitor. It’s so easy to get overwhelmed and stressed in such a high stakes fast paced environment, but I still take that moment at every job to step back and admire the work.
Another rewarding aspect that I wasn’t expecting was the camaraderie you build with other artists on each job. One of the best feelings is unexpectedly running into a friend on set. I think it’s so important to have friends in the same industry, nobody understands your struggles or celebrates your wins more!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.hannahlaurenmua.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hannahlaurenmua/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hannahlaurendelrosario
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hannah-lauren-103b52128/
Image Credits
Photography by Jordan Fiordaliso, Ashley Minier, Leaf Lieber, Ciara Nicdao, Joebert Tupas, Phoebe Cheong, and Bảo Ngô