Dick Page for Shiseido, Backstage at United Bamboo s/s2011

TEXT, Vivian Kelly
Video, Lisa Johnson

Dick Page, Artistic Director for Shiseido is the man when it comes to doing polished makeup with one distinct element that has you looking again at the model’s face.
That was the unifying thread between the different looks he created for these NYFW shows Zero + Maria Cornejo, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Narciso Rodriguez
Michael Kors, United Bamboo and Band of Outsiders.
I first became aware of Dick and his work in the late nineties, when my boss, Michael Kors, hired him to do the spring show. Michael had decided to show at Bryant Park and wanted some edge to the look. Show Producer Alex de Betak thought it would be interesting to do something on the dangerous side [a departure from the beautiful glamazons Bobbi Brown used to help create in the prior seasons.].
He referenced Brian de Palma’s 1984 thriller, ‘Body Double’, starring a dangerously somewhat punk Melanie Griffith,




“A well built woman who strips with her window open each night” who tempted ‘Jake”, who was house sitting for his actor-friend, ‘Frank’. Jake becomes obsessed with meeting her and gets caught in a bizarre web of murder and intrigue.

These days, Dick is still doing Michael’s show, and is among the most sought-after editorial stars for runway shows, and he’s added commercial and theatrical projects to his body of work. Add to that, his job as Artistic Director for Shiseido, and doing the makeup for a Broadway Play. His collaboration with Shiseido started way back in 1997, when he worked on the Japanese-based INOUI line, which he helped to relaunch in 2002 as Inoui ID. In 2007, he was named Artistic Director of Shiseido The Makeup, in which he's a color creator and Product Developer for the brand- worldwide. The best part about this is that now we can go to the counters in the USA and pick-up the shades he’s created rather than begging a friend to ship it to us from Japan.


In our interview backstage, pre-United Bamboo, Dick showed us a gorgeous new color he was excited about,Dragon Red [a best-selling Shiseido lipstick] with some gold flecks in it”. On the other side of the spectrum, is a beige-gold color that is pretty, and anything but “EMU”. This nude-ish color is perfect if you’re looking to channel a look seen in the Michael Kors Collections ads, in which Carmen Kass looks natural and polished, each and every season. The ideal lip color to achieve this look is Shiseido Rouge Perfect Lipstick in Dune [BE310], which he used later that week for the Michael Kors s/s2011 show.
Another great look is the bold, fun one Dick created for Marc by Marc Jacobs. The eye-catching red lip at Marc Jacobs - Shiseido Makeup Perfect Rouge Lipstick in Day Lily (OR418) is on my fall makeup buy list.






The atmosphere at United Bamboo was decidedly more mellow than backstage at a Marc or Michael show, so we had time for some fun questions, in addition to the usual, “So, what’s your inspiration?” ones.


I found-out a few things about Dick that I didn’t’ know before our informal pre-show chat.
#1: Dick is a Pilates Fan.
#2: Dick was a butcher, in a previous lifetime, before he began his second career is being one of the world’s top makeup artists.
#3: He’s got one foot into his third and fourth careers -
doing photography, and working on the makeup for a Broadway Play.