For hair color trends and celebrity hair, colorists turn to The Colorist. Celebrity hair, hair color ideas, hair color products and more.
Issue link: https://thecoloristmag.epubxp.com/i/300006
20 The Colorist | MAY/JUNE 2014 | thecoloristmag.com back in black Ian Michael Black, Aveda Global Artistic Director, Hair Color on what inspires him, the innovative coloring techniques he's known for and why education matters PHOTOGRAPHY: COURTESY OF AVEDA. icons Ian Michael Black shows of his Color Belting technique at Aveda Congress. L et's get one thing out of the way right now: Ian Michael Black did not grow up wanting to be a hairdresser. What drew him in was a fascination with how changing aspects of your appearance can shape people's perceptions of you. So after training for two years in Cambridge, Black moved to London to work in a salon on King's Road. A few years later he joined Toni&Guy; where he developed a passion for teaching and became Head Academy Trainer and a member of the Toni&Guy; International Artistic Team. He joined forces with Aveda in 1999, and was named Technical Artistic Director of Aveda's Advanced Academy in London. Four years ago he relocated to New York where he is Color Director on the Aveda Artistic Team. "I'm very lucky that my job allows me to travel," says Black, who takes photos of things that interest him when he's on the road, from architecture to hair and fashion he sees on the streets in diff erent cultures. "When it comes time to put a collection together or plan a show, I've got a visual record of all these things I like. T at's where I fi nd inspiration." For colorists who want to take their career to the next level, the key is education. "Every manufacturer off ers classes from base-level on up," says Black, who suggests working those classes in the order they're off ered. "Don't think that because you've been working for fi ve years you should start with an advanced class. T ere's a path to education, and classes are designed to start at the foundation level and work their way up the ladder. Each time you take these classes you build your skill level and understanding of color. Sometimes I sit in on other people's classes even if it's at the most basic level, and I always get something out of it." Black is well respected in the industry for his innovative coloring techniques, which he attributes to the fact that he's incredibly left-brained and methodical. "I like playing around with shapes to see what kind of eff ect I can get," says Black, who introduced a new technique called Color Belting— "It's a variation on ombré," he says—at Aveda Congress. "Hair that's darker at the root and lighter on the ends is so normal now, so we have to push the envelope. T is technique creates a belt of color in the middle, which pushes the whole ombré trend forward." Here's something you may not know about Black: He has at least a dozen tattoos, from swallows to dragons to fl owers, most of which he got on impulse after waking up and thinking, I'd like to get a tattoo today. "None of them have any particular meaning; they're just things I happen to like." Black admits that when he fi rst started inking himself about 24 years ago, tattoos were a bit rebellious. Now they've gone mainstream. "When I teach classes today I don't ask who has a tattoo, I ask who doesn't. T ey're in the minority now." 0 5 1 4 i c o n s . i n d d 2 0 0514 icons.indd 20 4 / 1 5 / 1 4 1 : 3 9 P M 4/15/14 1:39 PM