Marc Rosen
The Art of Clarity
“Fashion is a great source of inspiration,” says Marc Rosen, the legendary cosmetics packaging designer. “It keeps reinventing itself.”
A pure nostalgic who often draws inspiration from the past, Rosen recalls when he was a child in the 1950s watching his mother take out her beautiful gold compact and lipstick case and powder her nose. “The richness of the ritual was part of her being,” he says.
“In that era a woman’s compact was an important accessory that underscored her sense of style," Rosen explains. “It was a high quality piece often made of gold or gold-plated metal."
In creating The Art of Clarity collection of color cosmetics packaging, Rosen teamed with Eastman and six international molders to produce elegant designs using The Glass Polymer™ family of cosmetic materials.
The Chic collection by Axilone is sleek and deceptively simple, inspired by elegant cosmetic packaging of the 1940s and 1950s. “The compact clasp (as well as the lipstick and lip gloss cap) is clearly a nod to elegant jewelry-inspired closures of years gone by,” Rosen explains.
The Swirl collection by Jackel “extols The Glass Polymer™ and its ability to effortlessly flow and hold unique shapes and forms,” says Rosen, adding: “Think Zen aesthetic of a Brancusi sculpture but reinterpreted for the 21st century.”
The Prive collection by Pieriplast of Peru is fashion forward and based on the timeless appeal of stripes. “The alternating stripe thicknesses capture light and create varying depths of color when the package is full of product.”
The Halo collection by Alcan of Brazil is all about the purity of proportion and beauty of innovative materials. “Classic design creates a clear resin halo effect to showcase and enhance the product within.”
The Triad collection by Leidel was inspired by a personal compact created in the 1940s by “Jeweler to the Stars” Paul Flato for Elizabeth Arden, founder of the cosmetics company by the same name. “The compact lid was designed to reflect the flap of an envelope.”
The Puzzle and Palette collections by Plasmetik Precision Molding of Hong Kong and Shanghai demonstrate how fashion can be both fun and art. “Fun, fresh and young at heart, Puzzle can be used to create customized product mixes,” Rosen explains. “Palette communicates the idea that make-up is an art form. What better way to express this than a modern, stylish artist’s palette?”
MAKING ART REALITY
“Packaging is an art form,” Marc Rosen says. “I find inspiration almost anywhere. I look up at a skyscraper and think, 'My God that would be a fantastic lipstick case.'”
The Art of Clarity engages a consumer’s sense of wonder, fashion and emotion, featuring clarity as a framework for communicating the virtues of the brand while enhancing the product itself.
“Our job is to create packaging and products that speak to consumers on many levels and the wellspring from which we draw is based on our experiences as well as our imaginations,” says Rosen.
With award-winning designs of fragrance bottles in glass and extraordinary skin care jar designs in The Glass Polymer™, Rosen continues to make art reality in the cosmetics and personal care market.
NEW HORIZONS
“Rarely do designers have the opportunity to step outside the confines of the expected and pursue new aesthetic and packaging directions,” Rosen says. “Rarer still are sophisticated materials that allow designers to fulfill their vision.”
Rosen’s collaboration with Eastman and molders in the Designing with clarity skin care jar project established a new model for innovation in the cosmetics industry by harnessing the creative potential of design, materials and manufacturing expertise.
“By working with The Glass Polymer™, we were able to conceive and develop sophisticated make-up designs that would not have been possible otherwise,” Rosen explains. “Innovative silhouettes and unexpected material distribution allowed us to create unique offerings that aesthetically redefine this category.
“This is why The Glass Polymer™ is the designer’s choice and makes creating new compact, lipstick and lip gloss packaging an adventure. The results can be memorable if deployed as part of a larger branding initiative. They can become signature to that brand, giving it a real competitive advantage.”
Rosen adds: “Make-up is all about color and fashion. Intensely personal and often unexpected, both possess the potential to take us to new horizons.”