When Duffy landed in New York City on Wednesday, after spending the week working on couture shows in Paris, one thing at the top of his to-do list: find wigs. The key hair stylist for the Marc Jacobs Spring 2024 show had to source 108 full-lace human hair wigs in less than 48 hours. “We had to strip them all from the silicone, hand color them, crimp them, then set them,” says Duffy backstage, a few hours before the show. Everything about the show is an “absurd play on silhouettes, proportions, and structure,” explains Duffy. This includes the clothing, the set—Robert Therrien's sculpture, "No title (folding table and chairs, beige),” is featured—and the beauty looks.
“The shape is a suggestion of that late 60s, early 70s disco moment,” explains Duffy. On the moodboard for the show, one can spot an image of The Supremes featuring their towering, heavily teased bouffants. While the looks for the show weren’t a direct copy or literal interpretation of the R&B girl group, it was the starting point for the idea of overly proportioned hair.
To prep the models for the wigs, the stylists used hairspray to lay down the hair before applying a wig wrap. L'Oreal Paris Elnett Satin Extra Strong Hold Hairspray and Redken Forceful 23 Hairspray were used to finish the looks once the wigs were applied. Speaking of The Supremes, Diana Ross and her signature feathered lashes and pale lips were a major inspiration for the show’s makeup look. “We wanted to do an iconic look and give it a twisted element,” says Diane Kendal backstage.
The mood board for the beauty looks.
Photo: Ama Kwarteng
The room where the finished wigs were stored.
Photo: Ama Kwarteng
Photo: WWD/Getty Images.
A model backstage.
Photo: Ama Kwarteng.
The key makeup artist for the show used Cetaphil’s Gentle Skin Cleansing Cloths, Hydrating Eye Gel-Cream, and Daily Oil-Free Facial Moisturizer to prep the skin before applying a base. “It’s really important to moisturize the skin so that the foundation sits well,” she explains. Highlighter in the form of white grease paint was applied to the inner corner of the eye, underneath the brow, and on top of the brow bone before being topped with white powder. Then, Laura Mercier Loose Setting Powder was used to add a matte finish to the skin.
Ahead of the show, her team spent two days coating the top and bottom lashes with black nail polish to give them a spidery and shiny finish. The top lashes were lined with black eyeliner before applying the lashes with black Duo glue “to give some real density to the eye,” explains Kendal. The makeup artist finished things off with a matte lip. “We used a taupe lip color and dabbed foundation in the center to create a very matte mauve lip.” All together, the 60’s inspired, doll-like look was a visual surrealist feast.