Biography
Belgian makeup artist Peter Phillips is the creative and image director of Christian Dior makeup. Philips took up the appointment in March 2014, telling press at the time, “I am honoured by the responsibilities that are entrusted to me by Christian Dior makeup, whose values, savoir-faire and innovation I respect.” He has done the makeup for all of Dior's shows since then, but also worked with brands including Louis Vuitton, Chanel and magazines like Vogue Italia.
In 2013, Philips stepped down from his role as creative director of Chanel’s makeup and beauty lines, where he was responsible for both product development and the makeup looks for Chanel’s numerous campaigns and runway shows.
Phillips graduated from the Royal Academy Antwerp, where he matriculated with long-term collaborators Raf Simons and Willy Vanderperre . Phillips initially studied fashion design, however, while working as a dresser, backstage at a show, he told The Independent that he “saw the make-up teams and realised you could make a living out of doing that. So when I realised that in fashion you could also do make-up, I was intrigued.”
Phillips quickly began to work as a makeup artist, although by his own admission he was “very selective” with who he chose to do so with. While working on a shoot with Vanderperre, Phillips chose to sketch Mickey Mouse on to a model’s face, and in the process created one of his most iconic images. He was also the mastermind behind the oversized red lips at Alexander McQueen's AW09 runway show.