Once again, we are overwhelmed with the positive response we have received over the past few months from fashion and beauty industry professionals interested in booking our courses! Our dream of creating an Academy run by industry professionals FOR industry professionals is becoming a more rewarding reality with each enquiry.
It is so wonderful to see the recognition session stylists are currently receiving in the beauty press, especially high-profile publications focusing on the world of hairdressing. More than ever before, the worlds of the salon and the session stylist draw ever closer, as the general public continues to embrace the artistry and creativity of this beautiful industry – where self-expression lies at the heart of everything you do – as stylists – and as people who have the privilege of playing a part in your clients’ self expression and how they communicate who they are to the world through the stylistic choices they make. YES – of course we are super-aware of celebrities being admired and recognised for the style choices they make – and as a session stylist you become an integral part of this innate need to draw attention to ourselves – to stand out from the crowd – to have an impact – to make people sit up and take notice of us! This hyper-awareness of their image and the impact it has on society at large is what never ceases to fascinate us and feeds our admiration!
What is it that truly captures people’s imagination?
Especially in a world where people in the public eye have entire teams around them to make very calculated, considered choices on behalf of their clients, where we have become accustomed to people with the most incredible talent in the worlds of film, art and music lending their image to high end brands as a commodity. This is not meant as a criticism. In a world where we are ever-more bombarded with ‘choice’ – making individualistic choices that are actually an extension of who we are and how we see the world becomes ever more complex.
In the many years I have known Kevin, what truly keeps me inspired is his wonderful ability to ALWAYS ‘see’ the person he is working with – whether it is his celebrity clients, or any of his long-standing clients, who have trusted him as their personal hairdresser for many years. Inspiration always seems to come from being able to truly be in the moment – to project your vision as a stylist through your work not necessarily on the idea of who you would envision your client to be – but who they envision themselves to be.
Within this playful collaboration – your most wonderful gift to have as a stylist is to share your commitment to your craft – to be inspired, joyful and confident in your work – confident enough to play – confident enough in your techniques to allow you to discover new creative perspectives with each client you are working with! Regardless of whether it is the first time you are working with that person, or they have been clients for a long time. Just as our identities are ever-fluid and we evolve in how we see ourselves and our place in the world – so does the way we choose to communicate who we are through the way we look. Kevin truly understands what it takes for his clients to step on set and be confident and comfortable in their skin and who they are, so they are ready to ‘perform’ and ‘transform’. It is ultimately why we admire people in the public eye. Their unapologetic sense of ‘self’ – embracing their ‘voice’ as not merely their own – but a voice that speaks for others and makes us identify with them.
As a stylist – your successful career is built upon a deep understanding of these dynamics and a sense of ‘self’ in a professional context is inherently linked to a confidence in your skills – a sense of knowing that your choices will resonate beyond the ideas born in your imagination. I have had many conversations with Kevin in recent years about the ‘power’ of image and how Pop-culture has taken its place in our everyday consciousness above what was once considered ‘Art’. In past generation, admiration for artists was predominantly defined by their ability to express the eternal conflict with ‘self’. In many ways – this ‘ideal’ of the artist being able to tap into this duality on our behalf, has been replaced with an admiration for individuals who have a very clear sense of self beyond any judgement people might have about them. Our celebrity-obsessed culture feeds into this very admiration and it is very powerful cultural factor in modern society.
The key to a truly rewarding career and to have an impact in this infinitely creative industry – is to embrace this dialogue! The fascination we hold for the intimate dialogue between, let’s say a painter and his or her subject, the relinquishing of ‘control’ that lies at the very heart of that process – does also lie at the very heart of your work as a stylist. To be inspired means to be inspired by people, by what moves and touches them – a fluid dialogue between how they feel about themselves and by allowing your work to be inspired by how you feel about them as people.
The magic happens in the spaces in-between, when what you envision makes them discover something new about themselves and when what they ask of you means your horizon broadens.
Martin Wall
Creative Director