PAINTING FACES
by Steely

Jon Hennessey believes in Vancouver's creative community and giving back to it. His journey has been as colorful as his make-up kit. Starting as an inexperienced Blanche Macdonald graduate, Hennessey diligently worked to create an international reputation by painting famous faces as a MAC Cosmetic make-up artist. Venturing to the world of freelance, he re-invented his identity and is now the Owner and Creative Director of Nobasura Artist Management Inc. Developing artist's careers and sharing his knowledge is something that Jon is passionate about.

Growing up in Maple Ridge, British Columbia, Hennessey had no real connection to the world of make-up or fashion. His high-school girlfriend was a perfectionist in make-up application on herself (particularly when it came to eyebrows) and that fascinated him. This profession was not about the girls, "...it was about the art, the transformation.". After seeing the work of Stephane Marais's sketch concepts realized on a model in VOGUE magazine, Hennessey says "...something just clicked... I was seeing this as the art form that it was...". All these factors led him to the make-up artistry course at Blanche Macdonald and for the first time ever he picked up a brush. It was an "alien process", but he loved it and thrived on being introduced to something he had never done before.

Hennessey went to school with the goal of working for MAC Cosmetics, his eyes firmly set on building a career with the emerging cosmetic line. This goal was accomplished within two months of graduating when MAC hired him. The union helped Hennessey to accomplish in the first five years of his career what many take others their entire career to accomplish. By the time he was 25 he had worked international events like The Academy Awards, Caannes and Sundance Film Festivals and Paris runway shows. These experiences defined his style. He re-evaluated everything he had come to know as a Canadian make-up artist. One might think that after accomplishing such goals on an international level he would have reached the top tier in his industry, but not Hennessey. He is still not sure he has reached the level of success that others see him at. What he does know is that he is more excited about the industry at age 35 than he was at 19 because he knows so much more about what the possibilities are. His goals are now set high.

The eight years with MAC took him around the world. During that time he hit a corporate ceiling and felt a pull from the freelance community. This prompted a risky decision to leave the MAC brand, move back to Vancouver, build an identity as the freelance artist Jon Hennessey and bring to life the vision of his own local brand company, NOBASURA Artist Management Inc. NOBASURA (which means 'no trash' in Spanish) and the talent they represent will "…help to realize Vancouver's potential as a fashion capital". Hennessey says, "…I wanted to start an agency in Vancouver that was part of the international creative collective…pouring more international creative energy into our city…it's been called Hollywood North for years but has never been called New York West." He believes that NOBASURA and all its local and international creative collaborations will play a role in that happening.

Hennessey is now an artist representing artists. He is a teacher who was taught. He loves his career of painting faces and is inspired by the faces he paints. He is driven to be the best and continues to push the creative boundaries hoping to inspire those who aspire to be their creative best.

Follow Jon Hennessey and his artist collective at www.NOBASURA.com