5 Makeup Artists Who Use Their Faces to Create 3D Art

Makeup had always been a very important aspect in people’s lives and especially for those who were in the public spotlight. Right now, makeup is accessible and affordable for everyone to get, and some people choose to create art with it. It’s not just a tool to make your face shine, while hiding a few blemishes, but also a way to convey your emotions. And that’s what some 3D makeup artists out there are trying to do through their art.

Italian makeup artist Luca Luce and his wonderful work.

Luca has been working as a professional makeup artist for over 18 years, but he only started his 3D designs back in 2014. In the beginning, he was using his hands to create illusions, but then he moved on to his face. He is so talented at painting the perfect shading and creating any design you can think of, from turning his head into a whole cake to adding a shark on his skull.

Talking about his work, he says, “I am inspired by everything from magic and fantasy, I never attended art school, but I love makeup and 3D art, so I got the idea of trying to paint images on my hand using makeup. For a small job like a spider resting on the face, it takes just half an hour.” He continues, “For something more complex like cubism on the whole face it can take two hours or more.”

Mimi Choi is a viral sensation due to her designs.

The artist has very successful social media pages, where each post gets hundreds of thousands likes. She also uses her own face as her canvas and creates surreal 3D designs that seem unbelievable. “I’m drawn to this style because I have complete freedom to create and express myself in ways that I can’t with words. I feel that there is so much potential with this type of art, and my imagination is my only limit.”

“People often think that I use Photoshop, so I like to use TikTok to break the illusion through movements that show my work is not edited. My ideas come organically, and I don’t pay too much attention to trends because I feel that this is the most authentic form of self-expression.” Right now, Mimi is an instructor and leads many masterclasses and workshops all over the world.

Dain Yoon uses her face to capture her imagination on.

South Korean artist Dain Yoon, is often referred to as a ’makeup artist’, but in reality she is a classically trained artist who uses her face as her canvas. Many will say that her art looks photoshopped, but it’s 100% authentic, painted by hand and each look can take anywhere from 3 to 12 hours. “The real face reveals itself underneath the hand that hid it, expressing how the first impression of a person does not tell the whole story.”

In an interview, the artist said, “At first, for my personal art works, I painted on the bodies of models. A little later, this is about seven years ago, I decided to draw on my own face because the face is the strongest, most sensitive part of the body where I can deliver my own most delicate emotions I seek to convey. When I am creating my ‘‘look’’, I always try to capture everything inside the frame, not just the painting. I try to curate everything, not only the body parts being painted but also the background, the atmosphere, the movement of the body, objects, lighting, every single detail.”

Cakeface RJ is also someone in the 3D makeup industry to keep an eye on.

RJ has built a tremendous social media presence thanks to her incredible and otherworldly makeup designs. She started by sharing her work on Instagram, and it didn’t take very long for her brand to take off.

“Being able to work with Instagram when my career began on Instagram is crazy. It’s like a full-circle moment. I know people who have worked in the makeup industry for ten years and to see how far I have come in just three years thanks to Instagram is crazy. It’s been a really interesting journey but a great one. I’ve had a really positive experience overall.”

Apart from creating surreal designs, RJ has also created quite a few super realistic makeup looks, mimicking the appearance of many celebrities. Due to her success, many brands send her their products, and she isn’t afraid to reveal her favorite ones. “I’m currently obsessed with Juvia’s Place products; the eyeshadows are so pigmented and work really well for my illusions, as I don’t use face paint.”

Andy is focused more on horror-themed makeup designs.

Andy is an up-and-coming makeup artist, who often showcases his talent in creating 3D designs, which are impressive. Many of his designs are inspired by the horror genre, and he often adds fake injuries, blood and other monster-like additions. He is also very active on TikTok, with his account having over 150k followers.

As you can see, he chooses bright and dark colors that create a dichotomy in his themes. Some of his designs are theatrical, and some others are more dreamy, using neon colors that could easily be seen at summer festivals. He also uses prosthetics sometimes, giving his designs an extra dimension.

In our day and age, more and more men are starting to wear makeup and some of them look even more masculine with it. And sometimes that makeup is necessary for their film roles.