Marc Beaussart developed a preoccupation with all things scientific when he was a young child, playing with his parents’ microscopes (his mother and father were scientists). Now, primarily working as a still-life photographer, Beaussart has spent the past few years combining his two interests, collaborating with a CGI model-maker to produce a high-definition series inspired by the creepy crawlies he would examine through a different kind of lens as a youngster.
But there is far more to these entomological models than meets the eye, for they are all meticulously crafted from make-up, with matte lipsticks and iridescent eye shadows forming the basis of hyperreal antennae and exoskeletons. “I made some work for AnOther last year, creating microscopic cosmetic shots with MAC make-up,” he says of the starting point for his latest project. “I always try to push my work, so this series is what followed. It’s a powerful thing to work with cosmetics, because of what they represent culturally. Plus, on a very practical level, you can destroy them.” Beaussart feels no need to archive the physical models after they have been documented, he continues, as by photographing them, they become preserved as though in a digital taxidermy display case. A curious method of working, perhaps, but one that yields captivating results nonetheless.
