What does it mean to be a makeup artist in 2020, in the age of social media ? Le Boudoir Numérique visited the studio of Chad Monroe, alias The French Beauty Boy, to discuss face filter apps, virtual influencers, gender identity, Kim K., Rihanna and Fecal Matter, while the influencer-makeup artist made, live, a video tutorial of an original makeup for our readers. Reportage.

By Ludmilla Intravaia 

Le Boudoir Numérique : On Instagram, you go by the name The French Beauty Boy. Who is this character, your double sublimated by makeup ?

Chad Monroe, makeup artist : Graduate of Paris Conservatoire du maquillage, I have been practicing my profession for four years, mainly for magazines editorials. In recent years, makeup has become trendy and more and more boys are getting into it. Me too, I wanted to express myself in this more colorful, crazier way than the one done in fashion editorials, when we are working with models. This is the reason why I started to make up myself, and then created The French Beauty Boy. This character, it’s me defending a conviction : makeup has no gender, it’s for everyone.

What do you mean by that ?

In France and in some countries, the idea that people have about makeup is still very stereotypical. For some, makeup is reserved for women, for special occasions, to go out for example or to seduce someone. And male makeup is often considered taboo. However, things are changing, especially in the United States, in England and increasingly in France, where people now wear makeup for pleasure, because they want to, without sex discrimination, because makeup now transgresses gender barriers.

Transforming your appearance into that of The French Beauty Boy, by slipping into the skin of a creature transformed by makeup, is this some kind of activism for you ?

First of all, I am not a creature. I’m a man who wears makeup, loves it and uses this art form to express himself artistically. I am not less masculine, because I wear makeup, nor more feminine. Our society likes to put labels on everything, on objects and people. The blue and the fire truck for the boys, the pink and the baby doll for the girls. And if a man chooses to wear makeup, he should also wear wigs and dresses. But the reality is much more fluid. For example, I wear makeup but I also wear a beard. At first, people were surprised that I did not shave it but now it is better understood. My generation and the next have well integrated this notion of acceptance of difference, claimed in a natural way, by being yourself, in complete freedom. More than a deliberate act, activism is more the result of my simple presence, wearing makeup, on social networks or when I attend a public event.

Has the makeup artist profession changed profoundly, under the influence of the digital world, especially social networks ?

No, the traditional makeup artist profession, those who make editorials for magazines for example, hasn't really changed. They continue to collaborate with models, photographers, photo retouchers and a whole team of people with whom it is necessary to sympathize in order to continue working. Aside from the fact that posting their work on social media may allow them to become better known professionally, they remain dependent on their address book and word of mouth to get booked, which is difficult. This is the reason why I wanted to become an influencer, to move away from this way of working. As a influencer-makeup artist, I do everything myself, from A to Z and I no longer depend on anyone.

Do you work at home ?

Absolutely. In addition to my makeup space, I installed my own photo and video studio there, including cameras, lighting, photo backgrounds, microphones, editing and retouching softwares, in short all the equipment necessary for my activity, in all versatility. Besides my traditional website, I have two Instagram accounts, one for my professional MUA activity, the other for my influencer role and, for six months now, my YouTube channel, where I post my tutorials and makeup tests videos. Given the visual inflation on social networks, we can no longer be content with photos taken with an iPhone, for example. It is essential to have professional equipment, to study photo and video practice, in order to produce clean images which will obtain the necessary likes. Make-up artist, photographer, videographer, editor, retoucher, PR…, I do it all.

Against the strong competition on Instagram from extravagant looks like, for example, those of drag queens, some of which are often excellent makeup artists, how can you hope to stand out ?

Precisely, Instagram and drag are linked. Instagram makeup is drag queen makeup for everyone. Not only for gay boys who want to transform into women but also for girls, especially American and British women, for whom it has become usual to wear over the top makeup. When you look at them on Instagram, you realize how much their makeup looks like drag makeup. With a program like Rupaul’s Drag Race which is a hit for the moment and drag queens like Miss Fame, Violet Chachki or Kim Chi (see below) whose popularity is exploding, the most incredible looks are multiplying and it is very good like that. We can no longer be satisfied with what has been seen in the past. We need such extravagance. For my part, I am very happy about that, without worrying about a possible competition. I have the chance to do what I like and I don't ask myself too much questions.

So there is a big difference between editorial makeup and Instagram makeup ?

Indeed, editorial makeup sublimates the preexisting beauty of the model, in order to put it in a photographic situation. The editorial makeup artist must know how to work with a multitude of different faces, using various techniques, while the influencer- MUA puts himself forward, by doing his own makeup. The challenge on Instagram is to published more and more makeups, always more colorful, always more extraordinary. Influenced by drag makeup, the Instagram makeup tends to erase the face features, rather than highlight them. On Instagram, we look more at the makeup than at the person. In addition, when I do a makeup, for example for the video tutorial created as part of this interview for Le Boudoir Numérique (available on The French Beauty Boy Instagram account here, pictures below), it takes me at least 5 hours of work. Impossible to take as much time on a fashion shoot, where the makeup of the model should not exceed 45 minutes. Thus, if the traditional makeup artist and the influencer-MUA are certainly animated by a common passion for makeup, they do not do the same job. For my part, I belong in the two worlds, my background as an editorial makeup artist, as well as my experience on Instagram and social networks making the wealth of what I can share today with my followers.

What do you think of face filter apps technology ?

Who still posts on Instagram non retouched pictures or without filter ? Photoshop, Facetune, Snow, blurring filters, light or 3D effects, live modification of the facial features or the jaw line, in photo and video, are part of this illusory quest for perfection encouraged by Instagram. We do it mechanically, because the others do it, to show the best of ourselves, even if I still try to remain a little natural, in the expression of my personality, so as not to lose this feeling of proximity with my followers. It's quite a rare attitude on Instagram, where all the images look the same, where we have the impression that they were all taken with the same camera, retouched in the same uniform manner but I think that it pleases my followers, that they find it refreshing. This is the big flaw of star influencers or virtual influencers. Too perfect and subservients to brands, they lose, in the long run, this bond of emotional attachment with those who appreciated their authenticity in the first place. At the moment, people are fascinated by the novelty of virtual influencers but, in my opinion, their success will not be profitable over time. It will not resist this lack of connection with the public.

Star influencers like Kim Kardashian are nevertheless very popular on social networks…

Kim Kardashian and Kylie Jenner are business women who are taking advantage of the current makeup craze by creating their own line of products. They have a name and will sell whatever they can on it. They’re not makeup artists, like all those stars who want their share of the cake too. Rihanna was the first to have her makeup line, then Lady Gaga and Kesha, soon Selena Gomez. But consumers are starting to get tired of this buying spree fueled by brands. Not a week goes by without a makeup palette coming out and the trend is to collect them all. I know some of my followers who don't wear makeup but who buy all the novelties. I myself have some 400 palettes that I barely use. It’s the pleasure of the acquisition, to try new materials, colors and formulas, in which we let ourselves be embarked. But frankly, we no longer know what to do wit all that stuff, our closets are full and our wallets empty. We only have one desire : to go into "no buy" mode for six months.

Could you recommend some Instagram accounts that you particularly like ?

I follow with great passion artists such as the Fecal Matter duo (@matieresfecales, see above) or Salvia (@salvjiia) who are real living works of art, mixing makeup, styling, prostheses and disturbing transformations. I love how they break the codes of standard beauty with their characters landed from another planet, where the ugly is so ugly that it becomes aesthetic. These Instagram accounts, completely crazy, encourage reflection and open-mindedness, in an increasingly sanitized and conformist Instagram space, where everyone does the same thing and everything has already been seen. I also like the work of MUAs close to the drag scene like Ryan Burke (@ryburk) and, in France, Dolly Page (@dolly__page, see below) and La grande dame (@lagrande_dame) who disrupt, in a joyful way, the ambient boredom.

* Chad Monroe website is here. The French Beauty Boy Instagram account is there. His YouTube chanel is there. 

* The French Beauty Boy is dressed by Romain Thévenin Paris : 

- Jacket “Metallic Smoking”, with glass and Swarovski cristal strass, metallic corner, hematite semi-precious beads, rhodoid stars, glass beads and handmade chain mail;

- Top in wool with turtleneck collar “Ice Klone” embroidered with glass cabochons, acrylic snowflakes, clear suncatcher, rhodoid stars and Austrian crystal. 

The website of this French brand is here. The designer Romain Thévenin has launched an Ulule campaign to support his fashion business, victim of the financial consequences of the Covid-19 crisis. The campaign is here.

* Continue reading with these Boudoir Numérique papers : 

- Covid-19 inspires fashion accessories to Fecal Matter 

- Fashion queen Gigi Goode impersonates Sophia, the top model robot

- Fashion tech extravaganza at Rupaul’s Drag Race 

- Fashion tech lights up Rupaul’s Drag Race UK