travelling to work with her when she
was unwell. “I’ll never forget that
moment. I told her to buy a bottle
of water and she said no because she
didn’t have the money. That’s when
I knew I had to become successful,
because I wanted to change her life.”
Every morning, he would watch
his older sister do her make-up.
Captivated, he applied for a job at
beauty retail giant Sephora. There he
immersed himself in the world of
make-up artistry, visiting the library
after work to research his favourite
artist, Kevyn Aucoin. He kept his
new-found hobby a secret from his
traditionally minded family, but they
found out after they discovered a
hidden shoebox filled with make-up
As her fans became increasingly
obsessed with her aesthetic,
Kardashian started sharing her glam
transformations on social media and
Dedivanovic’s star ascended. “After we
uploaded that first YouTube video in
2009, I came out of the subway and
I had hundreds of Facebook messages
from people asking me questions.”
That’s when the idea for the
masterclass was born and he hosted
his first workshop the same year with
just 16 attendees. Ten years later and
his masterclasses are a phenomenon,
taking him to Europe, Asia,
Australia and the Middle
East. Kardashian herself
has even made guest
appearances.
As a beauty editor,
I get my face painted
professionally a lot, and
I hate it every time. I’ve
perfected the “Oh my god,
I love it” reaction, while
staring at my reflection and
wondering why I look like Mad Eye
Moody mid-Polyjuice Potion
transformation. It’s not that those
people aren’t talented, by any means,“My instinct
and intuition
are part of
my success”and brushes. “My sister found it and
showed it to my mum. When I came
home that day they were freaking out
and staged an intervention. I broke
down and told them that I’m a
make-up artist and this is what I do.”
Their initial disapproval only
motivated him more, and after
building a portfolio he quit his retail
job and went freelance. “I told myself,
‘This is it. You have no other option.
You can’t go back, you have to make
it work.’” After establishing a small
roster of celebrity clients and
socialites including Natasha
Bedingfield, Dedivanovic’s
photographer friend called
in a favour and asked him
to do make-up the next day
for a little-known reality
star called Kim Kardashian,
who had just filmed season
one of Keeping Up With
The Kardashians. “I did the
make-up I normally do and
she said it was the first time
she looked how she wanted to look.”
Dedivanovic became Kardashian’s
go-to make-up artist and the pair
were soon inseparable.102 ·^ COSMOPOLITAN
Mario on
stage at his
masterclass