Anthony Mascolo

ANTHONY MASCOLOINTERNATIONAL CREATIVE DIRECTOR OF TIGI HAIRCARE
INTERVIEW FOR STYLING MAGAZINE

BASED: BED HEAD STUDIOS, BATTERSEA, LONDON
STAR SIGN; TAURUS
BORN IN LONDON 27.04.1957. (PARENTS BOTH ITALIAN)
MARRIED TO PAT MASCOLO –MAKEUP ARTIST
HAS 3 CHILDREN – GEORGINA (20), ALEXANDRA (14), JOSHUA (10)
LIVE _NEXT TO BED HEAD STUDIOS – WITH 5 CATS AND 1 DOG.
What is the main thing that teach your students?
At the TIGI Academy, we teach our new collection, which this year is called: RICOCHET, but we focus on inspiring hairdressers; giving them practical knowledge that they can use in their salons –so ideas that work for their clients, but that also challenge the hairdresser and take their work forwards. I believe that when you teach, it is very often the teacher that learns the most. This is because when you teach something that you have newly created, you see how another person interprets your ideas, how they understand the information that you give them and how they make it work for them. It is very satisfying when a student uses what they have learnt and does an amazing haircut!
How long does it take to become a real artist in hairdressing?
A ‘real artist’ is probably born, not taught! Being an artist is not necessarily being the best technically, but having the best creative thoughts and ideas AND being able to translate those ideas into reality; - creating a look that makes sense visually is attractive to the viewer and suits the person on which it is created. I have seen trainee hairdressers with an artistic eye, but I would say in general it takes 5 or more years to have both the hairdressing ability and the understanding of where to get inspiration and how to translate creative ideas into looks. Inspiration is important. You have to be open to ideas from everywhere and from everything.
What is the most important thing to study in hairdressing schools? In different countries there are many different schools and it is hard for a young student to know if they are on the right road.
I do not know very much about hairdressing education outside of the UK, but I would say that all learning is good. Learn all you can from your school, but learn more on your own. Look at magazines, at the international fashion shows (use the internet for this as well as magazines,) go to art museums and look at art books –both modern and the old masters ; look at architecture, nature and also ensure you know what’s happening in films, the music world and youth culture. That’s where you’ll find true inspiration –not in a classroom.
What is the best cutting technique to learn? Many schools teach different ideas.
Of course everyone wants to have their own way of cutting system; we are the same in this, so we have names for our techniques and we slightly do things differently from other companies, but the important thing is to use the information and most importantly adapt the techniques to you personally, making sure those techniques work. That means that when you cut hair, that haircut doesn’t just look good in the salon, but also when the client washes it herself and 6 weeks later it is still a good shape.
Why do you think London became the so-called hairdressers fashion capital?
London is very cosmopolitan. There are a lot of influences from every nation. In the 60’s there was a very strong creative movement. “Swinging London’ in the 60’s started what we have today. There was amazing progressive music-and that still happens,- there were some great fashion designers and of course Vidal Sassoon was one of the people in that ‘art’ movement. His geometric based styles was totally new and he in turn, led to the birth of many other hairdressers: Tony Rizzo and his brothers of Sanrizz, Trevor Sorbie, Nicky Clarke, Daniel Galvin and others who now work internationally. Then there was my family who came to the fore in the mid 1970’s and not only ended up with many salons but also founded a strong art team and teaching system. In our case we were inspired by Italian women’s femininity and the edginess of the English, so our work was slightly different from Sassoon’s. Since then, other groups have developed and the training has grown to a high standard. Also in the 1970’s a man called Renato Brunas of Renbow started doing hair shows and that gave a lot of today’s best known hairdressers a lot of exposure. Working on shows makes you push your creativity and makes you research. That makes your work grow. London has always been an experimental place.
What do like more – to make photos or to teach future hairdressers? And why?
If I’m honest, I love photography more these days, because it inspires me and on a photo shoot I can direct my top hairdressers to create great hair using our products. I am responsible for the total image of TIGI, so each year I come up with ideas for the marketing and advertising of Bed Head, Catwalk and S-Factor. For the shoots, I decide the image –whether we will shoot on location or in a studio. I work with the clothes stylist and my wife Pat who does the makeup, on the overall image –and I do some of the hair as well as taking the photos. That’s what I like best. I have a small but great, team of hairdressers who work with me –and on a daily basis, they are the ones who concentrate on the teaching.
Where do You find the inspiration for your job?
I get inspiration from everywhere. I am ‘aware’ –that’s important. Sometimes it’s from my team, sometimes from my daughter who’s an art student, sometimes its music; I watch MTV a lot and it can also be from films, but very often another photographer triggers an idea for a shoot, we then work on the hair and from a very avant-garde idea we then ‘tame’ the ideas so that we make them work commercially.
What type of woman’s beauty do you like? Have you got a favourite model?
I don’t think I like any particular type of woman. I like women to look quite feminine and that means that the hair should never have too hard an edge – women need to be ‘soft’. …Kate Moss is great!
How do like to spend you free time? Do you have hobby not related with you professional activities?
I have 3 children so they keep me busy and my family is my most important ‘hobby’, but I have a few passions: Chelsea Football Club –I go to every home match I can, usually with my son, Joshua who’s 10; skiing –I try to go 2 or 3 times a year; lying on a tropical beach with my wife –which we do on our own once a year and then with the kids in the summer and I love eating and cooking! My favorite is Italian food, but I also like Japanese food.