The creative and image director of Christian Dior make-up reveals why the classic American game show is an enduring beauty inspiration
“I love looking at things in black and white because there are no distractions; it’s purely aesthetic. Even if you are looking at old documentary photography, everything looks less real; it’s colour that adds life and passion and reality. I can get really carried away on YouTube watching this old game show called What’s My Line, which is in black and white. It’s from that silly American age of innocence, but I can watch ten episodes in a row. You can see how the make-up and hairdos evolved from the 50s to the 60s and 70s; watch the introduction of eyeliner and hairspray; see everything become bigger and bigger, more and more experimental. But then, sometimes someone will comment on one of the guest’s outfits, and they will say something like, ‘I love your green dress.’ Suddenly, the illusion is shattered and you realise, ‘Oh, there was colour in that era!’”
"I can get really carried away on YouTube watching this old game show called What’s My Line, which is in black and white. It’s from that silly American age of innocence, but I can watch ten episodes in a row" - Peter Philips
“Christian Dior is all about colour,” explains Peter Philips, creative and image director of the house make-up line. “It’s about that iconic elegance of the black and white era – but there’s a rainbow, a bouquet of possibilities for the woman wearing it. It’s like The Wizard of Oz; it starts in black and white but, once she puts on her dress, it’s the Yellow Brick Road.” It is this considered and imaginative approach to aesthetics that has marked Philips’ illustrious career. Having studied at Antwerp’s prestigious Royal Academy of Fine Arts (where he met Raf Simons and Willy Vanderperre), his work since has been at the forefront of industry innovation and earned him international renown.
This article appears in the A/W15 edition of AnOther Magazine.
