Unbeholden to the conventions of make-up, Anatoly Moscvin creates expressions of pure creativity that are compelling in their weirdness
The Dazed Beauty Community is our ever-expanding encyclopaedia of creatives and emerging talent from across the world who are redefining the way we think about beauty. From supermodels to digital artists to makeup prodigies transforming themselves in their bedrooms, these are the beauty influencers of tomorrow who embody everything Dazed Beauty is about. Discover them here.
Seventeen-year-old Anatoly Moscvin first became inspired to experiment with make-up when she came across photographs of the contemporary underground New York club scene while surfing the web one day. “I liked the drag looks so much that I got inspired really swiftly to do my own make-up and create original looks,” she says. “I painted my face, put on a wig and took selfies.”
The make-up artist, who grew up in the Moscow district of Chertanovo, is also a pole dancer and aspiring bodybuilder – an ambition that was first sparked after watching Natasha Batova, the bodybuilding champion of Russia and now Moscvin’s fitness coach, participate in a competition. While the heavy workouts of training have boosted her self-confidence and are great for relieving stress and anxiety, it’s dancing which allows Moscvin the freedom to truly express her emotions.
“I started pole dancing a year ago after a friend suggested me visiting a strip club. As I was watching the strippers I was wondering if they could do something cooler than just taking their clothes off by a pole,” she says. “Then I decided to sort of test that idea on myself.”
Perhaps because of her youth, Moscvin is totally unafraid of experimenting with make-up. Unbeholden to the conventions of placement, symmetry and shape, she produces colourful, abstract designs that are pure expressions of creativity. Compelling despite – or maybe because of – their weirdness. Here we showcase an exclusive Dazed Beauty shoot shot by Sasha Chaika with make-up by Moscvin.
What is it you do and why do you do it?
I'm a make-up artist, pole dancer and an aspiring bodybuilder. Why? With make-up, I can express my imagination and freedom using a human face as a canvas. With dancing I can turn my emotions into movements, feeling the music and transposing it into my body. Doing fitness gives me self-confidence, heavy workouts relieve me from stress and anxieties.
What’s your career highlight?
This year I've taken part in more than 20 photo shoots and projects for contemporary magazines, I also happened to organise some of them myself.
What is the future of beauty?
We change very fast, that's why the future is a completely unpredictable thing for me especially within the realm of fashion and beauty.
Tomorrow you wake up with another face of your choice. Whose is it and why?
When I wake up my face is one of a human being unknown to the world and then I totally change it to try out different looks and become famous.
If you had to choose one surgical enhancement, what would it be and why?
I would make the skin on my face absolutely pure, get rid of the pigment spots, correct my upper lid, plump my lips and delete my buccal fat pads.
