“Naturally, I don’t have the sense of smell that many people have,” Thom Walker tells me over Zoom. It’s probably something that a makeup creative director wouldn’t admit to — scent is quite an integral part of the makeup and beauty experience. Instead, Walker is taking a more unconventional approach that centres on sound.
The newly appointed Givenchy makeup creative director is a self-professed ASMR fanatic. Walker credits his emotive fascination with sound in part to his grandmother. He describes an adolescent Thom Walker who would watch his grandmother apply makeup. The sounds of things such as her mascara popping from opening its top case to the closing of her makeup compact, became central to the experience. It’s this sensorial take that Walker wishes to incorporate into Givenchy’s new makeup range.
It begins with the new Le Rouge Interdit Intense Silk, a redesigned range of 25 lipsticks that Walker refers to as wardrobe red. “It’s like a red for everyone and for every kind of mood,” he expresses. “We also have new shades — brighter orange, coral. There’s literally a shade for everyone. But the reds were so fun to create because I love red lipstick. It’s such a powerful move.”
Starting with lipsticks is a smart move. It’s an essential piece in any makeup kit that could work for just about everyone and come off differently depending on one’s skin tone. Red, being a key colour for Givenchy, also symbolises the house’s commitment to couture and innovation.
The Le Rouge Interdit Intense Silk is refillable with a redesigned case made from at least 30 per cent recycled plastics. Its formulation contains ingredients of natural origins and their harvesting done with the utmost care and concern for the environment. For example, the signature active ingredient, the Acmella Oleracea extract (one that helps to make lips firm and smooth) is harvested only from the flower. The rest of the plant is untouched so that it can grow.
More environmentally conscious efforts are undoubtedly a given these days, but Walker affirms that the authenticity of every intention is more important than highlighting them to the world. Givenchy’s makeup line has always reflected a sense of inclusivity and diversity. Its Prisme Libre foundations carry upwards of at least 30 shades, but Walker feels that more can be done.
“One of the biggest things on the list is to keep that going and push it more through imagery, storytelling, and shade extensions. There are so many shades in between the 35 that we already have. Those are the shades that really matter for me,” he says.
His introductory video for Givenchy shows that he’s all for going beyond the norm. In it, Walker is doing the makeup for an Asian female and a Black male. “It felt like me, you know? I thought it would be weird to not have a man, the same way it would be weird not to have a woman. It’s about representation.”
He adds that gendering makeup is unnecessary for Givenchy because the packaging is already non-gender-specific. “It’s very simple. It’s exquisite and looks good in a guy’s bathroom, in a girl’s bathroom, and anything in between,” Walker attests. The proof is on TikTok — the go-to social media platform for beauty-related content — where content creators of every gender gravitate towards a wide range of Givenchy’s makeup series.
If there’s anyone who knows the dependable functionality needed in creating stellar makeup products, it would be a makeup artist. Walker has been in the business enough to understand this. His extensive editorial experience includes fashion magazines the likes of i-D, W Magazine, and Dazed & Confused. Editorial makeup looks are dramatic, yet Walker’s always has an element of wearability. “But even when I do a look that is really pushed, I try to think about how I can make it simplistic or timeless,” he explains, adding that the goal is to always make someone feel their best.
I ask Walker for one makeup essential that everyone should own. Naturally, he pitches a Givenchy item, but is passionate about it. “I don’t want to appear like a salesperson, but this is the truth. The Prisme Libre Prep & Set Glow Mist has SPF45. It sets your makeup, it primes skin ready for makeup, it moisturises, it highlights, it gives your protection — it’s so many things in one bottle,” Walker rattles on.
I immediately went out to get a bottle to verify his claims. And let’s just say, Walker knows his stuff.
