Story & Lesson Highlights with Cassandra Moon

Cassandra Moon shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.

Cassandra, really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
I religiously Spin!
My cycle studio is Power & Flow in Scottsdale and is known all over the world for being an extremely powerful rhythm based cycling studio.
It’s a full blown compulsion at this point haha, I always joke and tell people it’s either spin or Prozac.
And feel like it directly correlates to the continued creativity I produce.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is FACEGOD and I am a PRO MUA based in Phoenix Arizona.
I work heavily also in LA and more recently Vegas and New York and my main areas of expertise is set work for campaigns and Masterclasses for other aspiring artists.

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What breaks the bonds between people—and what restores them?
I fully believe that “protecting your peace” has lost all meaning these days and completely breaks the bonds between people and community.

The price you pay for community is inconvenience, conflict, and peace quite honestly!
Everyone wants a village but no one wants to BE a villager.
And in exchange you gain support, love and everything else that comes along with having an unshakable system of familiars.

It restores bonds between people to accept that everyone is human.
People do dumb shit, people make bad choices, people say things that hurt others. You do too, we all do.
It is in your best interest to accept the flaw, and move forward and choose happiness and your people.
Teach your community how to be better, lean into softness, stick around.

When did you stop hiding your pain and start using it as power?
A couple of years ago honestly. So more recently:

I was going through the darkest time of my life, my mind was changing about a lot, and I made a hard decision at the time to leave my 4 year long relationship with a girlfriend I was engaged too.
During this same time I lost quite literally all of my friends, and it happened to be one of the slowest years of my career due to my depression.
I wasn’t eating, and all my friends were spreading rumors that I was on ozempic bc I was so thin (mean)
I wasn’t sleeping, my hair was falling out.

I was so suicidal, (the scary kind where you don’t tell anyone you just do it.)
I thought even about quitting makeup all together and felt numb from everything.
I spent the holidays alone, I cried everyday.
Trying to hide so hard how I was basically treading water mentally just to stay afloat.
I was so scared to show my weakness.

I felt shame in my pain.

Eventually I had a friend quite literally force me to create art in the midst of my depression anyway.
And I created a character who was crying and also laughing .

I started leaning into using my art as a medium to showcase how I feel inside instead of trying to cover it up with something pretty.

And as cliche as it sounds, my work started going viral.
I started to take up space despite my pain or sadness and people were so receptive to me.
The first brand to reach out to me to send me PR was Anastasia Beverly Hills and I cried.

I could be a leader and be in pain.
I could make art that was strong even though I felt weak.

It changed my entire brain chemistry and it’s been an active muscle I’ve worked on ever since
(And I’m in a much better mental state now)

Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What’s a belief you used to hold tightly but now think was naive or wrong?
I don’t think this is necessarily a belief I’ve held onto tightly but one that is super prevalent in my field/ community is “specializing” in one type or style of makeup.

And I think it’s so engrained now into how people categorize artists that even now notice I used it at the beginning of this interview to explain to the audience what a majority of my commissioned work tends to be.
But I I don’t actually “specialize” in any style of makeup.
I specialize in makeup period.

I think it’s naive to say you “only specialize” in “soft glam”
Or “editorial” or “bridal”
To me that’s a total cop out to stroke your own ego at what you tend to be more naturally talented in, and to completely neglect the other end of the spectrum that could help you grow or be a more well rounded as an artist.

I want to be gifted in all areas of my medium and be able to handle absolutely any brief that comes across my table. Having a high makeup IQ means being able to handle any style of makeup, any color on anyone for any thing period.
And makeup just like any type of art or skill is like a muscle, you exercise your creativity in order to grow it stronger.
“Use it or lose it”
If you pigeon hole yourself into just one thing for long enough you become an absolute amateur in everything else.

You specialize in “timeless romantic” bridal makeup?
PuhLEASE!!! Give me a break!

Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. What do you understand deeply that most people don’t?
“The eye” is something that can’t be taught.
Art is not like going to school to be a chemist, or a doctor.
You can learn all there is to learn about it. But if you aren’t born with “the eye” you’ll never have it.

Hot take I know.
I firmly believe this.

The Eye is what takes a good artist and makes them great.
It separates the legends and puts them ahead of the pack.
Attention to detail, being able to see a formula and a facial composition and knowing exactly what it will do before you even begin is a language you learn all on your own.
Your intuitive creativity.
You either have it or you don’t and that’s it.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @FACEGOD__

Image Credits
Cassandra Moon
Cordi Locs
AKC Studio