Laura Mercier (born Michèle Mercier on 2 October 1960) is a French makeup artist and businesswoman.
Laura Mercier | |
|---|---|
| Born | Michèle Mercier October 2, 1960 |
| Nationality | French |
| Occupation | Makeup artist |
| Known for | Makeup, photoshoots |
Early life
editLaura Mercier was born as Michèle Mercier in Arles, France, on 2 October 1960, the youngest of three daughters. At 16, she enrolled as an art student at L'Ecole Supérieure d'Arts Appliqués Duperré, a design school in Paris, to pursue painting and drawing.[1] Mercier later enrolled at the Carita Paris Institute, a combination beauty school and salon in Paris, France. Following her graduation, Mercier worked as a makeup artist at the school and adopted the name "Laura" to avoid confusion with the actress Michèle Mercier, a client of the salon.[2] After attending Carita Paris Institute, she moved to New York and worked for famous magazines such as Elle, Allure, Glamour, and InStyle.[3]
Career
editMercier moved from Paris to New York City in 1985 to work as a makeup artist at the American edition of Elle magazine.[4] Mercier was hired as Madonna's personal makeup artist, following a photo shoot featuring Madonna for Vogue magazine.[1] Mercier also worked on campaigns for magazines and clients including The Gap and Chanel.[5] Other celebrity clients Mercier has worked with include Julia Roberts, Mariah Carey[6] and Sarah Jessica Parker.[1]
In 1996, Janet Gurwitch, the former Executive Vice President of Neiman Marcus, founded Laura Mercier Cosmetics with her partner, Gary Kusin. The company's philosophy focuses on what it calls the "flawless face", allegedly derived from Mercier's promotion of natural-looking makeup. The company asserts that this idea guides the development and presentation of its products. That year was the launching of Mercier's own cosmetics range.[7][8][9]
Mercier continues to work as a freelance makeup artist[5][10] and is a published author. In 2006, she published The New Beauty Secrets: Your Ultimate Guide to a Flawless Face.[11]
On 23 March 2014 she joined with Claudia Poccia for the ovarian cancer Awareness Month and donated some of her savings to the Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance.[12] In April 2014 she launched a new collection called New Attitude.[13]
References
edit- ^ a b c S.S. Fair (29 June 2012). "Laura Mercier: the beauty expert who became a mega-brand". Style.com. Archived from the original on 2 July 2012. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
- ^ Marlene Montanez (September 2008). "Behind The Flawless Face" (PDF). Arizona Foothills. Mediabistro.com. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
- ^ Eldor, Karin. "How Laura Mercier Has Remained A Force In Beauty, After More Than 20 Years". Forbes. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
- ^ Tatin Yang (13 June 2014). "What primer can do for you". Inquirer. Archived from the original on 22 June 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
- ^ a b "Laura Mercier". Gawker.com. Archived from the original on 30 March 2014. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
- ^ Diaz, Thatiana (12 June 2019). "How A Nervous Breakdown Shaped The Course Of Laura Mercier's Career". www.refinery29.com. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
- ^ "Beautiful Lives: Laura Gurwitch". Style.com. 29 June 2012. Archived from the original on 30 March 2014. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
- ^ Rebecca Gonsalves (3 September 2012). "Laura Mercier: 'It's beautiful to think that you can help women to feel more confident'". The Independent. Archived from the original on 5 September 2012. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
- ^ Chesters, Anna (10 October 2011). "A brief history of Laura Mercier". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
- ^ S.S. Fair (19 April 2012). "Shooting Stars". Samurai Shopper. The New York Times. Archived from the original on 22 April 2012. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
- ^ "The New Beauty Secrets". Simon & Schuster. Archived from the original on 2 March 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
- ^ "Giving back with the Laura Mercier Ovarian Cancer Fund". The Upcoming. 23 March 2014. Archived from the original on 30 March 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2014.
- ^ Kim West (24 March 2014). "Laura Mercier Launches 2014 'New Attitude' Summer Collection". Beauty World News. Archived from the original on 30 March 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2014.