Making of a makeup artist

Sigrid Shaw: 'Seeing people's reactions when you transform them - it's amazing'

- Hein Kaiser

Some people just have that spark - the kind that turns a job into a calling, the kind that sees creativity on a blank canvas. For makeup artist Sigrid Shaw, that canvas is the human face.

With a career spanning everything from film sets to bridal parties, corporate shoots to conceptual editorials, Shaw has spent years bringing visions to life, one brushstroke at a time.

Her journey into the world of makeup was anything but conventional. "My mom actually said when it was time for me to study something, because I was super academic, maths and biology and all that, she told me to do something fun to start," she said.

"And then I could do something else later."

That "something fun" turned into a full-fledged career. It all started when her mom's secretary heard a radio advert about a makeup course that included special effects and prosthetics.

"She told me, 'You can do movie makeup and all that jazz.' And I thought, that sounds amazing," Shaw said. "I love creating characters, making false teeth, going crazy with creativity."