Courtesy of MAC Cosmetics.
eL Seed is taking his signature Arabic calligraphy to the world of beauty with a new global collaboration with MAC Cosmetics. The Tunisian artist and the beauty brand have joined forces on a limited-edition collection. Launching exclusively in the Middle East on March 20, before hitting shelves in the rest of the world, the 10-piece range includes brushes, highlighters, lipsticks, cheek and eyeshadow palettes, as well as a cosmetics pouch to store all of it in. “Like art, makeup can change one’s perception,” states the artist, who was given total creative freedom from MAC during the design process. That obvious parallel between cosmetics and art considered, an eL Seed collaboration makes sense.
Like his art, the starting point of the collection was from the various suburbs of Paris, New York, and Dubai, which inform his work. “I draw my inspiration directly from the streets and from the communities in each location I’m painting,” states the artist. “The calligraphy I paint are words infused with profound meaning. Their universal messages cross cultures to inspire and reinvigorate neighborhoods,” he added. With the theme in place, eL Seed began to think about the color palette that would form the collection, ultimately settling on shades of hot pink, black, orange, and blue.
Courtesy of MAC Cosmetics.
Each product in the collection comes enclosed in vibrant pink packaging emblazoned with eL Seed’s ubiquitous Arabic script that draws from a quote from Roman statesman Marcus Tullius Cicero, “The face is a picture of the mind with the eyes as its interpreter.” The 37-year-old added more soul to the collection by naming the formulas after important women who have made an impact on his life and work — for instance, “Dima’s Glow”, the Extra Dimension Skinfinish, was inspired by his wife, meanwhile, an eyeshadow color dubbed “Gabriela” is an ode to Gabriela Torres Barbosa, the poet who inspired his vivid pink calligraphy in a Brazilian favela.
The MAC Cosmetics x eL Seed collection is the first time that the Tunisian calligrapher takes the leap into the business of blushes and lipstick. Hopefully, it won’t be his last.
The MAC Cosmetics x eL Seed limited-edition capsule collection will be available at maccosmetics.ae and select MAC Cosmetics stores, beginning March 20, 2019.
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