Morgane Martini is beauty’s femme fatale

When I sit down with Morgane Martini, it’s an all-black affair. Dressed head to toe in the colour while sipping on a cup of black tea, it’s as if Parisian glamour is built into the makeup artist’s DNA. Her perfectly-waved hair flutters gently in the wind, and there’s a subtle smokey eye adorning her eyes. We’re in London, but in a style fitting for the French makeup artist, she’s found a terrasse to conduct our interview from. Martini has been Christian Louboutin’s global makeup artist since the end of last year, but today we’re discussing the mogul’s latest offering to the brand’s beauty range. On the table sits a shiny box coated in that emblematic shade of red, and inside are 30 miniature bottles of the Teint Fétiche Le Fluide foundation. Beside that is a tray of lipsticks in sleek, pointed cases that are reminiscent of the stiletto heels Louboutin is best known for. “It kind of looks like a weapon, right?” Martini says. “I got stopped in the airport with one of these once. They thought it was a bullet.” It’s not the first time Martini has compared her cosmetics with something a little more dangerous. When creating Galerie des Looks (her first job for Louboutin, where she produced five makeup looks using their products), she was inspired by the idea of makeup acting as a weapon of seduction — a woman’s ammunition for empowerment. It’s this concept that Martini wants to revive once again, ushering in a new era for Christian Louboutin Beauté as a formidable force in beauty. With someone like Martini at the helm, it might just transcend the brand’s iconic red soles. 

Scarlett Coughlan: Your Galerie des Looks features a lot of colour, and a lot of red. That might seem fitting for the brand, but I’d argue you’ve got a particular flair for colour. Where did that come from? 

Morgane Martini: It’s funny because I’m constantly wearing black — I’m an all-black kind of person. But because I’m not a colourful person in my life, I think it’s fun to use it in my work. That’s the beauty of makeup. Being able to experiment.

SC: There’s definitely an artistic element to it. Is art one of your inspirations?

MM: Art is 100 per cent an inspiration for me. I’m a huge fan of [Alfred] Hitchcock, [Guy] Bourdin, Helmut Newton, Barry Lategan and Antonio Lopez. But I find inspiration in everything. I went to an art exhibition at the Musée d’Orsay recently and it was this American artist. It was all about white and when I saw the pieces, I was like, ‘WTF? It’s just white’. But then I started to see it was way more than that. It was the way the textures were applied on the canvas, and the way light would hit, creating shadows and luminosity. All of a sudden, I found myself imagining doing a shoot with those textures on the skin. Creating something really powdery and velvety, and then contrasting that with something really shiny. So, anything can be inspiring. 

SC: You’ve talked about using makeup as a weapon of seduction. Do you see this as a form of empowerment? 

MM: Absolutely. You put on a red lip and instantly feel like a different person. I don’t wear makeup much in my daily life, because I’m a mum. If I feel really tired, I’ll slap on some concealer and mascara and I feel great. It’s you, but better. But I also love the fact that you can transform yourself with makeup and give the illusion of self-confidence. In the same way you can wear a beautiful jacket and feel good, makeup gives you that same type of empowerment. Whether it’s a sexy smokey eye or something else, you can become whoever you want.

This excerpt was taken from HUNGER Issue 31: The Dreamers. Full story is available in stores worldwide now.