Cosmopolitan UK – September 2019

BEHINDTHESCENES

LauraCapon

“NotonlywasMariothe

sweetestman(I’ma bitin lovewithhim),

buthealsosharedmyobsessionwith

true-crimedocumentariesandbooks.I’m

currentlyreadinga celebritytell-allthathe

recommended.That’senoughtosaythat

wehaveourownbookclubtogether,right?”

READ

Throughout his masterclass

Dedivanovic stresses to us that it’s

not about the products he uses,

rather how he uses them. He

preaches the importance of editing,

knowing when to stop, of making it

look like the make-up was made for

their model. I get the sense that he

is trying to take his followers – who

are obsessed with the techniques he

brought to the masses – down a new

path. “Just because you know how

to contour and bake doesn’t mean

you should do it every time.”

After 116 audience questions,

I step out onto the grey London

streets, my Mario face washed off

the night before, but not forgotten.

After two days with him, it’s clear that

Dedivanovichassomethingthat

cannotbeemulated,despite 600

peoplewritingdowneverybrushand

productheuses.Hismostimportant

toolis thewarmththatmakeshim

addictivetobearoundandthe

intuitionthatturnsmake-upinto

a transcendentalart.Hehasreignited

myloveforbeautyandasI addthat

nondescriptcolourwheeltomy

onlineshoppingbasketonmy

phone,I rememberjustwhyI got

intothisindustryinthefirstplace.

It’snotaboutInstagramlikes,or

productlaunches,it’saboutthe

transformativefeelingyougetwhen

you’realone,armedwitha brushand

aneyeshadowpalette.Associetyfeels

moredividedthanever,Dedivanovic’s

abilitytounitepeoplemightjustbe

exactlywhatweneedmost.◆

Tobuyticketsto Mario’snext

masterclass,goto Themasterclass.com

but after doing my own “glam” for
17 years, I know what I want to look
like and no one else has managed to
deliver it. If just watching Dedivanovic
work his magic on someone else is
akin to a spiritual experience, what’s
it like to be painted by the make-up
messiah himself?
Sitting in his chair, I feel
completely at ease. He doesn’t once
check his phone or wander off for
a break – I can honestly say that no
make-up artist has ever given my
doughy face this much attention.
He doesn’t ask what make-up look
I want, making the final reveal all
the more nerve-racking. When he
is finally done, I wait for him to
walk away before I look in the
mirror. When I seemyreflection,
I’m genuinely shocked.I don’tlook
like a completely differentperson,
but I feel truly beautiful.I looklike
the version of me thatI’vealways
envisioned and hopedfor,buthave
been unable to articulate.Myskin
is flawless, my eyebrowssonaturally
defined you wouldn’tknowtheyhad
any product in, andthepink-red
lipstick (somethingI wouldnever
normally wear) makesmyeyeslook
far bluer than theydowhenI usemy
usual copper-tonedshadows.“You
look like a doll,” hetellsmeandnow
I truly get it. He isa miracleworker,
not only because hehasmademe
look beautiful, butbecausefor
possibly the first timeinmylife,
I truly feel beautiful.I havea sudden
urge to hughim,togripontohim
tightly andpledgemyallegiance.
As he getsread l ( h
later than plann
not a single
complaint),
I ask him
why he thinks
he’s been so
successful.
“I’m not the
most talented
make-up artist
by far, but Ihav

a great gut instinct and intuition.

That’s a huge part of my success,

understanding exactly how someone

wants to look and feel without them

having to tell me.” Holding on tight

to both my signed eyeshadow palette

and my improved sense of self-worth,

I can certainly attest to that.

Walking into Dedivanovic’s

masterclass the next day, the first

person I spot is his mum, looking like

she might actually burst with pride as

she watches from the balcony. A group

ofgirlstellmehowmuchtheylove

MariowhenI askwhytheytravelled

downfromBirmingham.A flashof

jealouslycrossestheireyeswhenI tell

themhedidmymake-uptheday

before,butit’squicklyreplacedwith

curiosity.“Whatwashelikeinperson?”,

“Whatlookdidhedoonyou?”, “How

didyougetintouchwithhim?”Before

I canexcusemyselftheyaskmefora

picture.It appearsthatbeingpainted

byDedivanovichaspromotedme

froma merefollowertoa fully

fledgedapostle.Fora microscopic

momentI imaginewhatit mustbe

liketohavesucha holdoverpeople.

Photosessionover,I takemyseat

asa filmbeginstoplay.It’sthestory

ofhiscareertodate,thesameone

hetoldmethedaybefore.Whenthe

Nikeshoeboxpopsuponscreen

with“Mario’sStuff ”scrawledonit,

I ’ helpbut

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g MAKE-UP MARIO DEDIVANOVIC. HAIR YONNY MONTANA OSPINA AT LHA REPRESENTS, USING 25 BENEFIT, FASHION WAVES07, QUICK DRY18, ALL FRO

M REDKEN,

INSTAGRAM.COM/YONNYSTREETSTYLE. STYLING LAURA’S OWN, MARIO’S OWN. ADDITIONAL PHOTOGRAPHS GETTY IMAGES, INSTAGRAM.COM/MAKEUPBYMA

RIO

With friend

(and fan)

Kim K