Conceived as an exploration of the past, present, and future of beauty, Face Forward is an ingenious showcase of the transformative, creative possibilities of makeup, with portraits of everyone from Julia Roberts to Sharon Stone, Martha Stewart to his mother, Thelma. His crafted visages range from minimal-application makeovers of friends to elaborate re-creations of such Hollywood icons as Audrey Hepburn (Calista Flockhart), James Dean (Gwyneth Paltrow), and Veronica Lake (shockingly, Martha Stewart) and such pop-culture personalities as Cher (socialite Alexandra von Furstenberg) and Siouxsie Sioux (Winona Ryder). The final pages present his ideas for looks to come, such as "Explorer," Mary J. Blige covered in eggplant body makeup with a rainbow of metallic eye shadows over her eyes and thickly glossed red lips; "Floralia," a freckled Lucy Liu resembling a sprite from A Midsummer's Night Dream; and "Venusian de Milo," Sharon Stone as an orange-haired, one-breast-baring sci-fi femme fatale. Throughout, Aucoin augments an already colorful book with step-by-step instruction, chatty commentary on each look and model, and riffs on such topics as friendship, politics (he repeatedly applauds the Clinton Administration for embracing diversity in the '90s), and the environment.

"Appreciating (even highlighting) individuality is one of the great things about makeup," asserts Aucoin, and Face Forward is a dazzling testament to that belief. For those who see the fun of makeup and are eager to experiment with the virtually unlimited possibilities of it, this book is a boon. --Rebecca Wright

Outside of the introductory chapters, the book is divided into five main parts: 1) "Behind Beauty," where Kevyn describes how he treats the face to bring out a wide range of attributes; 2) "Face to Face," which consists of in-depth photography and illustrations of the steps involved with creating beautiful looks; 3) "Dimensions," where Kevyn explores the "classic personifications of beauty" by making up actresses and models to look like stars of the past; and 4) & 5) forward-looking concepts of makeup techniques and the future of beauty, also using the faces of actresses (and even his mom).

I think it's great that someone as talented as Kevyn can be so generous in explaining his craft, but even if you're not into that, "Face Forward" holds up fantastically on its merits as an art/photography book: the resemblance of the current stars to the past ones is incredible (e.g., Winona Ryder as Elizabeth Taylor).

This book may be a little advanced for makeup artists who are just starting out, but hey, makeup is art, and art is about ideas, so it's definitely worth checking out. For anyone who is just plain interested in fashion and style, "Face Forward" will be intriguing, even if only for the skill exhibited in transforming one famous face into another. It's a masterpiece.


Facing the future with Face Forward   September 26, 2000
Karen Redmond (Seattle, WA USA)
16 out of 16 found this review helpful

Kevyn Aucoin has outdone himself again. This is an awesome step by step account of how to transform yourself. I have his other books and I can definitely say that this is my favorite. He takes everyday people and morphs them into a more glamourous version of themselves. This man is a "Master Beauty Magician"!


A Staple for your Makeup collection!   October 9, 2000
DONNA IVERSON (Eureka, CA. USA)
16 out of 16 found this review helpful

I saw Kevyn on the Oprah show! How beautiful the women were after Kevyn's talented artistry. The book is a must have. It shows the techniques that even we can use. Explained so even we can actually understand. This will be a great christmas gift for my girlfriends with the "six essential items" he recommends attached to the gift box! (so martha.....I know).....


Practical and fanciful makeup all in one book   June 25, 2004
14 out of 14 found this review helpful

Kevyn Aucoin does a good job of showing women how to do everyday makeup, including highlighting and lowlighting areas to emphasize the positive and unique features of each person. The beauty of this book though is in illustrating how makeup can be used to transform one's face for stunning and whimsical looks. I would recommend this to someone who is familiar with makeup but would like to learn how powerful a tool it can be.


Learn some make-up tricks from a true magician!   September 28, 2000
christy
28 out of 32 found this review helpful

Kevyn has done it again. This is his newest book, following Making Faces, which was a huge success. Kevyn offers very useful tips for make-up application, choosing colors, and finding your own style. In his books, he gives make-overs to celebrities, and normal folks as well. His celebrity makeovers are amazing- in this book, he transforms Martha Stewart to Veronica Lake! You will be amazed and entertained by these makeovers, even if you don't need the make-up tips (but who doesn't need to learn from the best! ). This is a great book to leave on your coffee table for guests to flip through. It's fun to try and guess who the celebrity is (Gwyneth Paltrow as James Dean? ). This is a great gift for anyone who's into make-up, fashion, or celebrities. Check it out!