Kevyn James Aucoin was an American make-up artist, photographer and author.
27 Facts About Kevyn Aucoin
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Kevyn Aucoin authored several industry-defining books with makeup techniques including facial contouring, which was relatively unknown in popular culture at the time, but pioneered and used in drag culture and stage makeup for decades prior.
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Kevyn Aucoin, often noted as being decades ahead of his contemporaries, is considered to be one of greatest make-up artists of the modern age.
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Kevyn Aucoin was born in Shreveport, Louisiana and grew up in Lafayette, Louisiana.
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Kevyn Aucoin then enrolled in cosmetology school to take a makeup class.
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Kevyn Aucoin then worked in a small corner of an exclusive women's store in Lafayette.
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In 1982, Kevyn Aucoin moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, thinking a larger city could help build his career as a makeup artist.
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Kevyn Aucoin soon experienced the homophobia he'd endured in Lafayette.
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The first year he was in New York, Kevyn Aucoin did makeup on test models for free to build up his portfolio.
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Kevyn Aucoin became one of the best-paid celebrity makeup artists in history.
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Kevyn Aucoin's philosophy was that every woman is beautiful within, and makeup was simply his tool for helping her discover that beauty.
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Kevyn Aucoin wrote a regular column about this philosophy for Allure.
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The colors, textures and finishes Kevyn Aucoin created in the New Nakeds would serve as the most influential direction of the latter part of the century, and visible as brands MAC, Bobbi Brown, and Laura Mercier all launched with their version of the products Kevyn Aucoin created years earlier.
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Kevyn Aucoin began publishing his creations in books: The Art of Makeup, Making Faces, and Face Forward, two of which became Time magazine best sellers; Making Faces debuted at number one.
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Kevyn Aucoin transformed Celine Dion into Maria Callas; Lisa Marie Presley into Marilyn Monroe; Courtney Love into Jean Harlow; Christina Ricci into Edith Piaf; Hilary Swank into Raquel Welch; Winona Ryder into Elizabeth Taylor; Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins into Josephine Baker; and Martha Stewart into Veronica Lake, among others.
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Kevyn Aucoin made appearances on Good Morning America and The Oprah Winfrey Show.
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Kevyn Aucoin eventually found his birth parents, and was able to personally meet them and his half-siblings.
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Kevyn Aucoin was in a long-term relationship with Eric Sakas, who remained a close friend after their breakup.
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In September 2001, after increasing amounts of back pain and headaches, Kevyn Aucoin was diagnosed with a rare pituitary tumor.
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Kevyn Aucoin had been suffering from acromegaly resulting from the tumor for much of his life, but it had gone undiagnosed.
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Kevyn Aucoin underwent a successful surgery and had the tumor removed, but continued to experience pain.
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Kevyn Aucoin began taking increasing amounts of prescription and non-prescription painkillers to ease his physical and mental suffering.
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Antunes implored Kevyn Aucoin to get help, and Kevyn Aucoin made many attempts to recover, but could not stop the drug use entirely.
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Kevyn Aucoin died on May 7,2002, at Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, New York of kidney and liver failure due to acetaminophen toxicity, caused by prescription painkillers.
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Larger Than Life: The Kevyn Aucoin Story is feature-length documentary directed by Tiffany Bartok.
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Kevyn Aucoin's former partner, Eric Sakas, is an associate producer of the film.
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Kevyn Aucoin was a major fan of the Comedy Central show Strangers With Candy and appeared in an episode alongside Amy Sedaris and Stephen Colbert as a funeral makeup artist.