Kevyn Aucoin
Encyclopedia
Kevyn Aucoin was an American
make-up artist and photographer.
and grew up in Lafayette, Louisiana
, to parents Isidore Adrian Aucoin and Thelma Suzanne Melancon, who adopted him as an infant through Catholic Charities
of Alexandria, Louisiana He had three siblings, Carla, Kim, and Keith, all of whom were adopted as well.
Aucoin was interested in makeup from the time he was a child, and frequently did his sisters' makeup and photographed the results with a Polaroid
camera—something he'd do throughout his career. Afraid to buy makeup, he would shoplift it. The guilt of stealing and fear of getting caught made him stop.
He realized he was gay at age six, and was frequently bullied at school. His parents were initially in denial of their son's emerging sexual orientation; his mother later said, "I didn't think Kevyn was a sissy; I just thought he was a gentle child." In one instance, he had a teacher spank his bare buttocks in class, which Aucoin later regarded as sexual abuse. The bullying continued in high school, and he dropped out after being chased by several classmates in a truck. He enrolled in beauty school and had hoped to learn more about applying makeup, but ended up teaching the class instead.
At 18, Aucoin worked in a small corner of an exclusive women's store in Lafayette. But the women were uncomfortable with a man doing their makeup. Thelma Aucoin recalled, "It was $30 for a makeup lesson, and these were women who paid $3,000 for a dress, but they'd never let him."
In 1982, Aucoin moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana
, hoping to start a career as a makeup artist. While in Baton Rouge, he was assaulted by a security guard at Godchaux's, a local department store. He was there with male friends to check out new makeup, when the guard approached them and said "upstairs or downtown," meaning they could be taken to the store's security office or be arrested. Aucoin and his friends opted for the security office, where they were beaten by security personnel. Fearing for his life, he decided to move to New York City
with his then-boyfriend Jed Root (who sometimes posed as his manager) to begin his career.
. In the three years following his first Vogue shoot, he did a total of 18 more. In 1984, he collaborated on Revlon's Nakeds line, the first line based solely on skin tones. However, his Vogue cover shoot with supermodel Cindy Crawford
in 1986 took his career in a new direction. During 1987-89, he did nine Vogue covers in a row, and an additional seven Cosmopolitan
covers. At his peak, he would often be booked months in advance and could command as much as $6000 for a makeup session.
His motto was that it was far more important to help a woman feel beautiful no matter what, and that makeup was simply his tool for helping her discover herself. A proponent of the philosophy that every woman is beautiful within, he was one of the best-paid celebrity make-up artists in history. He began writing a column for Allure
. A comment he made in a 2000 column, calling members of the National Rifle Association
"morons" drew a record amount of mail for the column and a few death threats. He would refuse to do the make-up of models he felt were too young.
hired Kevyn Aucoin, at the age of 21, as Creative Director for their prestige Ultima II line of cosmetics. A year later, Aucoin would launch The New Nakeds (later renamed The Nakeds), a groundbreaking line that was a strong counterpoint to cosmetics available at the time. Says Linda Wells
, editor of Allure
magazine, of the line: "It may not seem like it, but it was a powerful moment. Before, there were makeup lines for white women and others for black women. But he worked to design makeup for all skin tones. The idea was to empower a woman by revealing her natural beauty, and not to cover her up with layers of product."
The New Nakeds embraced a radically different aesthetic than the norm of the time: foundation
s that featured a yellow undertone, instead of pink or peach; eyeshadows, lipstick
and blushes were brown-based, neutral tones that were free of the pastel, vivid, or sparkly colours cosmetics companies knew sold better. Although Ultima II (and all of Revlon's beauty divisions) were in a decline at the time, the New Nakeds resuscitated interest in the brand and help re-establish Ultima II as a viable competitor in the prestige arena.
The colors, textures and finishes Aucoin created in the New Nakeds would serve as the most influential direction of the latter part of the century, and visible as brands MAC
, Bobbi Brown
, and Laura Mercier
all launched with their version of the products Aucoin created years earlier.
Aucoin, was named one of the top 7 Make-Up-Artists, by iFashion Network a global online fashion portal.
on their Inoui line. He would later be approached by both Vincent Longo and Laura Mercier
to endorse their eponymous lines, but decided to launch his own brand, Kevyn Aucoin Beauty, in 2001 instead.
, Janet Jackson
, Tina Turner
, Gwyneth Paltrow
, Lisa Marie Presley
, Courtney Love
and Vanessa L. Williams
. He became a highly in-demand makeup artist, often acquiring $10,000 per session for photo shoots or award shows.
He began publishing his work in books: The Art of Makeup, Making Faces, and Face Forward, two of which became TIME magazine best sellers; Making Faces debuted at number one. The books featured celebrities, as well as everyday men and women, including his mother, in makeup and costume (and sometimes prosthetics) designed to make them look like other celebrities or historical figures. He transformed Tori Amos
into Mary, Queen of Scots, Celine Dion
into Maria Callas
, Lisa Marie Presley
into Marilyn Monroe
, Christina Ricci
into Édith Piaf
, Hilary Swank
into Raquel Welch
, Winona Ryder
into Elizabeth Taylor
, Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins into Josephine Baker
and Martha Stewart
into Veronica Lake
, among others.
Aucoin made appearances on Good Morning America
and Oprah.
He appeared as himself in an episode of Sex and the City
called "The Real Me" (Season 4, Episode 2), doing Carrie Bradshaw's make-up for a fashion show during New York's Fashion Week.
The Tori Amos
song Taxi Ride from her 2002 album Scarlet's Walk
is a partial homage to Aucoin.
In 1999 he received an honorary degree from the Harvey Milk School for his support.
Aucoin lived with his partner, Jeremy Antunes, whom he married in an unofficial ceremony in Hawaii
in 2000 and thereafter referred to as his husband. He had also previously been romantically involved with Eric Sakas, who remained a close friend after their breakup and became president and creative director of Kevyn Aucoin Beauty.
Aucoin also obtained legal guardianship of his niece Samantha, then 15, who was living with Aucoin and Antunes.
resulting from the tumor for much of his life, but it had gone undiagnosed.
Aucoin began taking increasing amounts of prescription and non-prescription painkillers to ease his physical and mental suffering. Antunes implored Aucoin to get help, and while Aucoin tried to recover, he could not stop the drug use entirely. Antunes went to Paris for a week to be alone, and in that time, Aucoin became ill and was hospitalized. Antunes' leaving Aucoin for what became the last week of his life created animosity between Aucoin's family and Antunes, resulting in Antunes being locked out of the home he shared with Aucoin.
Aucoin died on May 7, 2002 at Westchester Medical Center
in Valhalla, New York of kidney and liver failure
due to acetaminophen toxicity, caused by his addiction to prescription painkillers. Despite his instructions that his ashes be scattered in Hawaii where he was married, Kevyn's remains are buried with his mother in Louisiana. His mother died six months after Kevyn.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
make-up artist and photographer.
Early life
Aucoin was born in Shreveport, LouisianaShreveport, Louisiana
Shreveport is the third largest city in Louisiana. It is the principal city of the fourth largest metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana and is the 109th-largest city in the United States....
and grew up in Lafayette, Louisiana
Lafayette, Louisiana
Lafayette is a city in and the parish seat of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States, on the Vermilion River. The population was 120,623 at the 2010 census...
, to parents Isidore Adrian Aucoin and Thelma Suzanne Melancon, who adopted him as an infant through Catholic Charities
Catholic Charities
Catholic Charities is a network of charities whose aim is "to provide service to people in need, to advocate for justice in social structures, and to call the entire church and other people of good will to do the same." It is one of the largest charities in the United States...
of Alexandria, Louisiana He had three siblings, Carla, Kim, and Keith, all of whom were adopted as well.
Aucoin was interested in makeup from the time he was a child, and frequently did his sisters' makeup and photographed the results with a Polaroid
Instant camera
The instant camera is a type of camera that generates a developed film image. The most popular types to use self-developing film were formerly made by Polaroid Corporation....
camera—something he'd do throughout his career. Afraid to buy makeup, he would shoplift it. The guilt of stealing and fear of getting caught made him stop.
He realized he was gay at age six, and was frequently bullied at school. His parents were initially in denial of their son's emerging sexual orientation; his mother later said, "I didn't think Kevyn was a sissy; I just thought he was a gentle child." In one instance, he had a teacher spank his bare buttocks in class, which Aucoin later regarded as sexual abuse. The bullying continued in high school, and he dropped out after being chased by several classmates in a truck. He enrolled in beauty school and had hoped to learn more about applying makeup, but ended up teaching the class instead.
At 18, Aucoin worked in a small corner of an exclusive women's store in Lafayette. But the women were uncomfortable with a man doing their makeup. Thelma Aucoin recalled, "It was $30 for a makeup lesson, and these were women who paid $3,000 for a dress, but they'd never let him."
In 1982, Aucoin moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge is the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is located in East Baton Rouge Parish and is the second-largest city in the state.Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research center of the American South...
, hoping to start a career as a makeup artist. While in Baton Rouge, he was assaulted by a security guard at Godchaux's, a local department store. He was there with male friends to check out new makeup, when the guard approached them and said "upstairs or downtown," meaning they could be taken to the store's security office or be arrested. Aucoin and his friends opted for the security office, where they were beaten by security personnel. Fearing for his life, he decided to move to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
with his then-boyfriend Jed Root (who sometimes posed as his manager) to begin his career.
Career
When he first arrived in New York, Aucoin was putting makeup on test models for free to build up his portfolio before he was discovered by Vogue. For the next year and a half, he worked daily with Vogue photographer Steven MeiselSteven Meisel
Steven Meisel is an American photographer, who obtained popular acclaim with his work in US and Italian Vogue and his photographs of friend Madonna in her 1992 book Sex...
. In the three years following his first Vogue shoot, he did a total of 18 more. In 1984, he collaborated on Revlon's Nakeds line, the first line based solely on skin tones. However, his Vogue cover shoot with supermodel Cindy Crawford
Cindy Crawford
Cynthia Ann "Cindy" Crawford is an American model. Known for her trademark mole just above her lip, Crawford has adorned hundreds of magazine covers throughout her career. She was named #3 on VH1's 40 Hottest Hotties of the 90s...
in 1986 took his career in a new direction. During 1987-89, he did nine Vogue covers in a row, and an additional seven Cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan (magazine)
Cosmopolitan is an international magazine for women. It was first published in 1886 in the United States as a family magazine, was later transformed into a literary magazine and eventually became a women's magazine in the late 1960s...
covers. At his peak, he would often be booked months in advance and could command as much as $6000 for a makeup session.
His motto was that it was far more important to help a woman feel beautiful no matter what, and that makeup was simply his tool for helping her discover herself. A proponent of the philosophy that every woman is beautiful within, he was one of the best-paid celebrity make-up artists in history. He began writing a column for Allure
Allure (magazine)
Allure is the leading U.S. women’s beauty magazine, published monthly by Condé Nast in New York City. It was founded in 1991 by editor in chief Linda Wells, who has been at the helm of the magazine ever since. From its inception, the magazine has been widely recognized for its intelligent,...
. A comment he made in a 2000 column, calling members of the National Rifle Association
National Rifle Association
The National Rifle Association of America is an American non-profit 501 civil rights organization which advocates for the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the promotion of firearm ownership rights as well as marksmanship, firearm safety, and the protection...
"morons" drew a record amount of mail for the column and a few death threats. He would refuse to do the make-up of models he felt were too young.
Ultima II
In 1983, RevlonRevlon
Revlon is an American cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care company founded in 1932.-History:Revlon was founded in the midst of the Great Depression, 1932, by Charles Revson and his brother Joseph, along with a chemist, Charles Lachman, who contributed the "L" in the Revlon name...
hired Kevyn Aucoin, at the age of 21, as Creative Director for their prestige Ultima II line of cosmetics. A year later, Aucoin would launch The New Nakeds (later renamed The Nakeds), a groundbreaking line that was a strong counterpoint to cosmetics available at the time. Says Linda Wells
Linda Wells
Linda Wells is an American journalist and current editor-in-chief at Allure magazineLinda Wells graduated in 1980 from Trinity College in Hartford. Connecticut. She began her journalism career at Vogue, where she wrote and edited stories about beauty, health, nutrition, and fitness...
, editor of Allure
Allure (magazine)
Allure is the leading U.S. women’s beauty magazine, published monthly by Condé Nast in New York City. It was founded in 1991 by editor in chief Linda Wells, who has been at the helm of the magazine ever since. From its inception, the magazine has been widely recognized for its intelligent,...
magazine, of the line: "It may not seem like it, but it was a powerful moment. Before, there were makeup lines for white women and others for black women. But he worked to design makeup for all skin tones. The idea was to empower a woman by revealing her natural beauty, and not to cover her up with layers of product."
The New Nakeds embraced a radically different aesthetic than the norm of the time: foundation
Foundation (cosmetics)
Foundation is a skin coloured cosmetic applied to the face to create an even, uniform colour to the complexion, to cover flaws, and, sometimes, to change the natural skintone. Foundation applied to the body is generally referred to as "body painting"....
s that featured a yellow undertone, instead of pink or peach; eyeshadows, lipstick
Lipstick
Lipstick is a cosmetic product containing pigments, oils, waxes, and emollients that applies color, texture, and protection to the lips. Many varieties of lipstick are known. As with most other types of makeup, lipstick is typically, but not exclusively, worn by women...
and blushes were brown-based, neutral tones that were free of the pastel, vivid, or sparkly colours cosmetics companies knew sold better. Although Ultima II (and all of Revlon's beauty divisions) were in a decline at the time, the New Nakeds resuscitated interest in the brand and help re-establish Ultima II as a viable competitor in the prestige arena.
The colors, textures and finishes Aucoin created in the New Nakeds would serve as the most influential direction of the latter part of the century, and visible as brands MAC
Make-up Art Cosmetics
Make-up Art Cosmetics, better known as M·A·C or MAC Cosmetics, is a manufacturer of cosmetics founded in Toronto, Canada and headquartered in New York City, New York.-History:...
, Bobbi Brown
Bobbi Brown
Bobbi Brown is the founder and CEO of Bobbi Brown Cosmetics. Her products are sold in over 988 stores and 56 countries worldwide.-Biography:From a young age, Bobbi loved makeup...
, and Laura Mercier
Laura Mercier
Laura Mercier is a French make-up artist who has lent her name to a line of cosmetics.-External links:*...
all launched with their version of the products Aucoin created years earlier.
Aucoin, was named one of the top 7 Make-Up-Artists, by iFashion Network a global online fashion portal.
sajal Cosmetics
Later, Aucoin would work with Japanese cosmetics giant ShiseidoShiseido
is a major Japanese hair care and cosmetics producer. It is the oldest cosmetics company in the world and the fourth largest cosmetics company in the world.-History:...
on their Inoui line. He would later be approached by both Vincent Longo and Laura Mercier
Laura Mercier
Laura Mercier is a French make-up artist who has lent her name to a line of cosmetics.-External links:*...
to endorse their eponymous lines, but decided to launch his own brand, Kevyn Aucoin Beauty, in 2001 instead.
Celebrities
He worked with hundreds of A-list celebrities like CherCher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
, Janet Jackson
Janet Jackson
Janet Damita Jo Jackson is an American recording artist and actress. Known for a series of sonically innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows, television and film roles, she has been a prominent figure in popular culture for over 25 years...
, Tina Turner
Tina Turner
Tina Turner is an American singer and actress whose career has spanned more than 50 years. She has won numerous awards and her achievements in the rock music genre have led many to call her the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll".Turner started out her music career with husband Ike Turner as a member of the...
, Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Kate Paltrow is an American actress and singer. She made her acting debut on stage in 1990 and started appearing in films in 1991. After appearing in several films throughout the decade, Paltrow gained early notice for her work in films such as Se7en and Emma...
, Lisa Marie Presley
Lisa Marie Presley
Lisa Marie Presley is an American singer and songwriter, also known as the "Princess of Rock and Roll". She is the only child of Elvis Presley, and daughter of Priscilla Presley.-Early life:...
, Courtney Love
Courtney Love
Courtney Michelle Love is an American rock musician. Love is the lead vocalist, lyricist, and rhythm guitarist for alternative rock band Hole, which she formed in 1989, and is an actress who has moved from bit parts in Alex Cox films to significant and acclaimed roles in The People vs...
and Vanessa L. Williams
Vanessa L. Williams
Vanessa Lynn Williams is an American pop-R&B recording artist, producer, dancer, model, actress and showgirl. In 1983, she became the first woman of African-American descent to be crowned Miss America, but a scandal generated by her having posed for nude photographs published in Penthouse magazine...
. He became a highly in-demand makeup artist, often acquiring $10,000 per session for photo shoots or award shows.
He began publishing his work in books: The Art of Makeup, Making Faces, and Face Forward, two of which became TIME magazine best sellers; Making Faces debuted at number one. The books featured celebrities, as well as everyday men and women, including his mother, in makeup and costume (and sometimes prosthetics) designed to make them look like other celebrities or historical figures. He transformed Tori Amos
Tori Amos
Tori Amos is an American pianist, singer-songwriter and composer. She was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument...
into Mary, Queen of Scots, Celine Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
into Maria Callas
Maria Callas
Maria Callas was an American-born Greek soprano and one of the most renowned opera singers of the 20th century. She combined an impressive bel canto technique, a wide-ranging voice and great dramatic gifts...
, Lisa Marie Presley
Lisa Marie Presley
Lisa Marie Presley is an American singer and songwriter, also known as the "Princess of Rock and Roll". She is the only child of Elvis Presley, and daughter of Priscilla Presley.-Early life:...
into Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
, Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...
into Édith Piaf
Édith Piaf
Édith Piaf , born Édith Giovanna Gassion, was a French singer and cultural icon who became widely regarded as France's greatest popular singer. Her singing reflected her life, with her specialty being ballads...
, Hilary Swank
Hilary Swank
Hilary Ann Swank is an American actress. Swank's film career began with a small part in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and then a major part in The Next Karate Kid , as Julie Pierce, the first female protégé of sensei Mr. Miyagi...
into Raquel Welch
Raquel Welch
Jo Raquel Tejada , better known as Raquel Welch, is an American actress, author and sex symbol. Welch came to attention as a "new-star" on the 20th Century-Fox lot in the mid-1960s. She posed iconically in a animal skin bikini for the British-release One Million Years B.C. , for which she may be...
, Winona Ryder
Winona Ryder
Winona Ryder is an American actress. She made her film debut in the 1986 film Lucas. Ryder's first significant role came in Tim Burton's Beetlejuice as a goth teenager, which won her critical and commercial recognition...
into Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor
Dame Elizabeth Rosemond "Liz" Taylor, DBE was a British-American actress. From her early years as a child star with MGM, she became one of the great screen actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age...
, Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins into Josephine Baker
Josephine Baker
Josephine Baker was an American dancer, singer, and actress who found fame in her adopted homeland of France. She was given such nicknames as the "Bronze Venus", the "Black Pearl", and the "Créole Goddess"....
and Martha Stewart
Martha Stewart
Martha Stewart is an American business magnate, author, magazine publisher, and television personality. As founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, she has gained success through a variety of business ventures, encompassing publishing, broadcasting, and merchandising...
into Veronica Lake
Veronica Lake
Veronica Lake was an American film actress and pin-up model. She received both popular and critical acclaim, most notably for her role in Sullivan's Travels and her femme fatale roles in film noir with Alan Ladd during the 1940s, and was well-known for her peek-a-boo hairstyle...
, among others.
Aucoin made appearances on Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
and Oprah.
He appeared as himself in an episode of Sex and the City
Sex and the City
Sex and the City is an American television comedy-drama series created by Darren Star and produced by HBO. Broadcast from 1998 until 2004, the original run of the show had a total of ninety-four episodes...
called "The Real Me" (Season 4, Episode 2), doing Carrie Bradshaw's make-up for a fashion show during New York's Fashion Week.
The Tori Amos
Tori Amos
Tori Amos is an American pianist, singer-songwriter and composer. She was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument...
song Taxi Ride from her 2002 album Scarlet's Walk
Scarlet's Walk
Scarlet's Walk is the seventh album released in singer-songwriter Tori Amos' solo career. The 18-track concept album details the cross-country travels of Scarlet, a character loosely based on Amos, as well as the concept of America post-September 11th . The album was the first released by Amos on...
is a partial homage to Aucoin.
Personal life
Aucoin's parents eventually became accepting of his homosexuality and started a chapter of P-FLAG in Lafayette.In 1999 he received an honorary degree from the Harvey Milk School for his support.
Aucoin lived with his partner, Jeremy Antunes, whom he married in an unofficial ceremony in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
in 2000 and thereafter referred to as his husband. He had also previously been romantically involved with Eric Sakas, who remained a close friend after their breakup and became president and creative director of Kevyn Aucoin Beauty.
Aucoin also obtained legal guardianship of his niece Samantha, then 15, who was living with Aucoin and Antunes.
Death
In September 2001, Aucoin was diagnosed with a rare pituitary tumor. He had been suffering from acromegalyAcromegaly
Acromegaly is a syndrome that results when the anterior pituitary gland produces excess growth hormone after epiphyseal plate closure at puberty...
resulting from the tumor for much of his life, but it had gone undiagnosed.
Aucoin began taking increasing amounts of prescription and non-prescription painkillers to ease his physical and mental suffering. Antunes implored Aucoin to get help, and while Aucoin tried to recover, he could not stop the drug use entirely. Antunes went to Paris for a week to be alone, and in that time, Aucoin became ill and was hospitalized. Antunes' leaving Aucoin for what became the last week of his life created animosity between Aucoin's family and Antunes, resulting in Antunes being locked out of the home he shared with Aucoin.
Aucoin died on May 7, 2002 at Westchester Medical Center
Westchester Medical Center
Westchester Medical Center University Hospital is a 635-bed Level I Trauma Center providing high-quality advanced health services to residents of the Hudson Valley, northern New Jersey, and southern Connecticut...
in Valhalla, New York of kidney and liver failure
Liver failure
Acute liver failure is the appearance of severe complications rapidly after the first signs of liver disease , and indicates that the liver has sustained severe damage . The complications are hepatic encephalopathy and impaired protein synthesis...
due to acetaminophen toxicity, caused by his addiction to prescription painkillers. Despite his instructions that his ashes be scattered in Hawaii where he was married, Kevyn's remains are buried with his mother in Louisiana. His mother died six months after Kevyn.
Posthumous ventures
Kevyn Aucoin: A Beautiful Life—The Success, Struggles, and Beauty Secrets of a Legendary Makeup Artist was published in 2003 by Atria Books and Simon and Schuster. The book was edited by Kerry Diamond and reviewed Aucoin's career through celebrity interviews, his beauty tips and techniques, and over 250 photographs.Books authored
- Face Forward, Little, Brown. 2000. 175p. illus. (ISBN 0-316-28644-3., ISBN 0-316-28705-9.)
- Making Faces, Little, Brown. 1999. 160p. illus. (ISBN 0-316-28686-9., ISBN 0-316-28685-0.)
- The Art of Makeup, Harper-Collins Publishers. 1994. 176p. illus. (ISBN 0-060-17186-3.)
- The Art of Makeup, Perennial Currents. 1996. 176p. illus. (ISBN 0-062-73042-8.)