A Painter of People

Marcelo Gutierrez has no interest in "precious makeup."

- By Danya Issawi

Marcelo Gutierrez came to New York from Oakland, California, at the age of 20 to be a painter and got a job as a stylist's assistant instead, of steaming clothes. Eventually, he ditched his earlier dream. "I saw the makeup artist on set and I was like, Wait a minute. I know how to do makeup, and I'm a painter, and they're probably making a lot more money than me," he says. "I was like, I think this would be a really amazing route to take as an artist and as a being living in a capitalism-a way to satisfy staying alive but also feeding my creativity."