Everything Marilyn Manson Has Said About His Makeup
- Photo: Marylin Manson / YouTube
His Mother Used To Dress Him In Wigs And Lipstick
Before he was the Antichrist Superstar, Marilyn Manson was simply Brian Warner, a kid from Canton, OH. From an early age, Manson's mother encouraged him to try on her wigs and makeup. Manson explained to The Fader:
My mom used to put her wigs and lipstick on me when I was little. I have one weird picture of me as a toddler with an unlit cigarette in my mouth, wearing her blonde wig and a diaper, sitting on the couch. Wonder how I ended up here.
- Photo: Patrick Whitaker / Flickr / CC BY-SA 2.0
He Pocketed Maybelline Eyeliner From Grocery Stores At The Start Of His Career
Before perfecting the makeup style that would define his look, Manson went through a heavy experimental phase that involved swiping eyeliner and foundation from stores in his free time. In an interview with The Fader, he talked about being a rebel on stage long before he was a well-known public renegade:
The early performances I did, I wore Maybelline eyeliner that I would [take] from grocery stores late at night. I had a mild bout of kleptomania in Florida. I [swiped] Max Factor Pan-Cake foundation, which was all-in-one: you just wet a sponge, and you put it on, and done. So when people say, 'Marilyn Manson wears pancake makeup,' technically that was true, though only back in the day.
- Photo: Andreas Lawen, Fotandi / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
He Uses Makeup To Express His 'Great Imagination'
Marilyn Manson is best known as a musician and enemy of polite society, but he also acts and paints. Manson began his creative ventures by decorating his face. He says he's been practicing with makeup since he was young, but before Manson used facial products, he tried watercolors on his skin.
Manson told The Fader his interest in painting his face came from a desire to be seen - but not necessarily as the Brian Hugh Warner people knew:
I suppose my fascination with makeup comes from me having a great imagination and not being able to contain it just to a piece of paper or a piece of music. When I was a kid, I used to do the KISS makeup with watercolor paints... I wanted to be seen; I just didn't want to be seen the same way that I was.
- Photo: marilynmanson / Instagram
He Wore Blood On Stage Before Switching To Lipstick
When Brian Warner's alter ego Marilyn Manson was born, the performer was using pancake makeup and eyeliner, but that all changed when a fan pelted him with a bottle in the middle of a show. The glass pierced his chest, and he used it as makeshift lipstick. He liked the look so much that it stuck.
Manson told The Fader: "Lipstick came a little bit later. Someone threw a bottle at me on stage once. I just cracked my chest with it and rubbed the blood across my mouth."
- Photo: Alex Const / Flickr / CC BY 2.0
Dennis Hopper's Character In ‘Blue Velvet’ Inspired Him To Wear Lipstick
When it comes to applying makeup for his stage show, Manson draws inspiration from several eccentric personalities. Notably, he's a fan of one of David Lynch's most terrifying villains. He told Interview that Frank Booth, Dennis Hopper's character in Blue Velvet, showed him how to put on makeup.
Manson said, "I think it could have been Dennis Hopper portraying Frank Booth in Blue Velvet, and him smearing the lipstick on his face, that inspired me. I was also inspired by Lee Bowery, and, of course, Bowie."
- Photo: Nothing
He's Been Using The Same Products Since The Mid-'90s
If you've been following Manson's career since the Antichrist Superstar days, then you've been watching him perform in the same products for well two decade. He told The Fader about the origins of his makeup product selection and how little his arsenal has changed:
I think the first makeup I ever paid for was in '95 or '96, before recording Antichrist Superstar. I was in New York for seven months, and I remember going into the MAC store and being very excited. I bought this foundation that they don't make anymore, and lipliner and lipstick. I've been using MAC's Diva lipstick since they invented the color. I haven't really varied since. My makeup kit now is pretty small, about five items. I think limitations make creativity.
- Photo: Marilyn Manson / Facebook
He Always Does His Own Makeup
Manson told Interview he doesn't have his own makeup artist, unlike most high-profile celebrities. He also tends to improvise when applying his look. He said, "I’ve always done my own makeup - I just dip my finger in there and freestyle it."
- Photo: marilynmanson / Instagram
He Got The Inspiration For His One White Eye From A Childhood Dog
Many celebrities have different colored eyes, most famously David Bowie. And while Manson has spoken at length about his love of the Starman, Bowie didn't inspire the shock rocker to put in his signature single white contact. That inspiration came from the family dog. Manson told The Fader:
Every character in history or cinema or stories has that flawed left side; I identify with that. I also had a dog with one white eye that [passed] while I was a kid. Who knows where the unconscious mind will take you when it comes to transforming yourself into some sort of monster.
- Photo: Marilyn Manson / YouTube
He Can Do His Makeup In Under Five Minutes
Considering the intensity of the singer's creative look, one might assume Mason takes well over an hour to put on his makeup. In reality, he can put on his face in the time it takes to brew a fresh pot of coffee. Manson explained in a Reddit AMA:
One thing I do when I do my makeup is I use my fingers a lot. And I can do my own makeup probably in less than five minutes, depending on what type of makeup I'm doing. I usually use a combination between MAC and Aquacolor and Make Up For Ever. And Christian Dior. I usually use Christian Dior foundation and Aquacolor blue-whatever, and then when it comes to black, I like to use a mixture of different things. But I like to try to use things that stay put, and I find that Make Up For Ever does a pretty solid job of that. So does MAC, for different things.
- Photo: rawpic / WIkimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0
He Appreciates The Way Makeup Allows Him To Transform
Although performers tend to match their makeup to their current Hollywood profile, Manson uses makeup to transform himself. He likes the way it makes him look and sees it as a means of morphing into whoever he wants to be. In an interview with The Fader, he explained why he chose such a dramatic look for his rock alter ego:
I wear makeup because it's the way I like to look. More like why a woman wears makeup: not in terms of looking feminine but just to look a specific way. Maybe 'attractive' is the right word; maybe it's not the right word. It's different every day for me. Makeup gives me the ability to transform quite easily.
- Photo: Andreas Lawen, Fotandi / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
He Regurlarly Falls Asleep In His Makeup
In an interview with Noisey, the shock rocker explained that on some nights he can't be bothered to remove his makeup. After he injured his leg in 2017, Manson kept his stage face on for days without taking a shower.
He told the online magazine, "I often fall asleep in my makeup only because I'm lazy... I actually think I still have some makeup on since New York. I haven't been able to actually take a shower or bath since my injury. Not a real one, at least."
- Photo: rawpic / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0
He Likes The Way He Looks Without Lipstick
Manson told Nylon he has started to move away from lipstick in recent years. Although he now wears less makeup as a whole, he believes the absence of lipstick on a face otherwise covered in product gives him the unsettling appearance of someone who's been in a fight. He said:
Lately, I’ve mostly been wearing, I don’t know if I’d call it a more masculine version of makeup, but it’s less. Sometimes when I don’t wear lipstick I like the way that looks better, because it looks like I got beat up... Black eyeliner is something that always suited me because I shave my eyebrows and it brings out the strange shape of my head. It gives you more of a palette to work with when you make it blank.
People don’t recognize me if I’m not wearing makeup or if I grow a goatee or something. It affords me the ability to be more chameleon-like.
- Photo: Andreas Lawen, Fotandi / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0
He Wears Less Makeup The Older He Gets
Although many might assume makeup becomes more of a necessity for rock stars as they get older, Manson claims he wears less with age. Given Manson's busy schedule and habit of falling asleep in a full face, his confession is surprising.
The singer told Noisey, "I wear less and less makeup these days despite the fact that it looks like more. Like, I don't wear as much foundation if you want to be specific about it. I like a more natural look these days."
- Photo: Nicholastbroussard / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
He Uses Smolder Kohl Eyeliner By MAC
Manson's eye looks are notoriously diverse yet accomplished. He always has the perfect smudge or manages to paint stripes across his face without mistake. He even makes sure to apply eyeliner when he's entertaining guests at home.
In a 2015 Rolling Stone profile, Manson said he uses Smolder Eye Kohl by MAC because it "smudges, so I get that 'just woke up, just got f*cked, am a bit of a scoundrel' look that I like."
