"I want to become a makeup artist, but I’m still in high school / college. What can I study now that will help my career later?"
The short answer is the fine and performing arts, history and literature. Remember that the best makeup artists have well-rounded educations and know at least a little about a lot of things. Educate yourself! In addition to the way this knowledge will inform your makeup applications, you'll be appreciated for your ability to conduct intelligent conversations when you have to spend six hours straight doing one actor's makeup!
It's never too early to start developing your eye for color and form. Any class you can take in fine arts, such as sculpture, drawing, painting, photography, film theory or art history will be very valuable to your future career as a makeup artist. Try to get involved in your school and community theater programs doing makeup for performances, and learn as much as you can about stage lighting while you're at it. Courses in world history and literature will expand your horizons, prepare you for working on period projects and give you an idea of how people dress and style themselves all over the world.
Also keep in mind that makeup artists work with all sorts of people, especially when traveling, so the more languages you can speak the more in-demand you will be: All other skills being equal, the American artist who can speak French will get flown to Paris while the one who doesn't will stay home! In addition to the liberal arts, try to take chemistry and biology at some point during your academic career (and save the textbooks if you can). Basic science knowledge will help you if you ever need to create makeup on the fly or develop prosthetics.
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