Calling Sam Visser one to watch is a massive understatement. Having started his career at age 12, the makeup artist, photographer, and videographer is a creative overachiever. By junior high, he was assisting on photo shoots in Los Angeles-major ones, no less. In high school, he began working full-time with high-profile clients such as Kris Jenner and Kim Kardashian. Now based in New York, he regularly paints the faces of some of his generation’s biggest beauties (Bella! Lily-Rose! Ariana!) and has zero attitude about it all. “I know about the whole tortured-artist thing,” he says. “I don’t doubt that it’s real because I feel that sometimes, but you really do have to enjoy life.” No wonder we’re so thrilled to welcome him to this weekend’s Rose Inc. MASTERCLASS -and to see his artistry in action.
How does a nice boy like you get obsessed with makeup?
From a very young age, I had an interest in anything creative. I always loved painting and making movies. My grandma and mom love makeup, and they’d always have all of the little free makeup from Clinique.
The free gift with purchase.
Yes-little lipsticks and eyeshadow and blushes. Those were mine to play with. I was around seven when I started doing makeup, and when I was 12, that’s when it really picked up. I would go to my friends and say, “You are coming over and I am going to paint your face.” I didn’t know what I was doing, but I started taking pictures. This is when Instagram first started, and I would post a before-and-after photo. I mean, these girls were 12, so there was no “before and after” to be had! But I just wanted to show how I could transform a face.
I grew up in a small town called Ventura about an hour and a half from Los Angeles. I used to force my dad to drive me to makeup stores, and I’d talk to artists there. I was adamant; I knew wanted to do makeup. My dad and my mom were so supportive and let me run free. Now that I’m older, I am grateful for that. When you’re a kid, you don’t think that deeply about it.
That level of parental support is rare.
It really is. I try to express my gratitude to them. They come from a different generation-my parents are in their 60s-so a lot of people in their generation aren’t really about kids doing their own thing. All of my family members have gone to college and they have jobs, so me being an artist was a little scary for them. But they always saw that I had a thing for art, and they supported me.
How did you make the leap into artistry?
I did this makeup class in LA with one of my makeup mentors, David Hernandez. He called me one day and said, “You need to go to this photo shoot. You’re going to meet people who are going to guide you throughout your career.” I had no idea what I was walking into. The photo shoot could have been a little umbrella setup and a random model. But I walked on to this set, and it was for a David LaChapelle shoot.
Read full interview: https://www.roseinc.com/blogs/content/sam-visser
