INSTYLE March-April 2019

INFEATURE
Phil Barwick
One of the most humble Australian hair artists you’ll ever meet, Phil Barwick has juggled salon and
artistic work with enviable Aussie spirit. Here we chat with Phil about his life on stage, in-salon and
a long-time loyalty to Redken.
You have recently returned from an
epic 2019 Redken Symposium. What key
sci-fi references inspired you for your
Symposium show?
I was so honoured to be given the
opportunity to be part of another Redken
Symposium and to work with George
Joao and Lindsey Olson. For our Hot
Off the Press show I took inspiration
from artist H.R. Giger. He’s the guy who
designed the original creatures for the
Alien films but also his other works
that inspired my direction. There’s an
alluring but haunting mix of gene splicing
and fetishism.
What is the most commonly asked
editorial question?
‘How do I become confident with
photographing hair?’
Just start doing it! Perfecting work is a
marathon not a 50 metre sprint so give
yourself time but don’t waste time,
produce work, see what works and what
doesn’t. Become able to decipher how
a technique may have been created. Be
humble when you look at the work of
others. Your true value is waiting for you
but you have to earn it.
How do you find inspiration each year for
shows like this?
It’s a matter of being open to the things
around you, sure there’s always influence
in art, movies and fashion but it’s how
your mind deals with influences around
you. I reckon this is the biggest shift in an
artist’s creativity, when you start to fall
back into the visual influencing realm. I go
on a journey to find relevant beauty within
the weird shit that ‘flicks a switch'.
If you could produce any show you
wanted what would you do?
Argh geez, where do I start! Something
under water would be epic. Light behaves
totally differently (light and also the
weightlessness to hair is astonishing). I’m
not talking some synchronised swimming,
I love to remove the human subject from
our familiar worlds and create a series of
mystical characters. Even the audience
would participate. Submerged and silent
with the sound of your own breathing
overwhelmingly loud, we’d be forced
to be present. The experience would be
incredible if everyone survived!
What is it you love most about Redken
and what keeps you loyal?
Redken could be seen as a holistic
mentor. I’ve been fortunate enough
throughout my personal development
to understand the value of long-term
relationships. I’m given the opportunity
to give back to or enlighten others plus
the creative and technical highs have
been amazing but there’s something
bigger than that. My relationship with
Redken has shown me how to discover
myself through all that we love in our
industry. I feel I could write a book
on this subject. It’s not always an
easy journey but becoming present
with yourself isn’t going to come
gift wrapped.
What have you learnt while working on
stage this year, in terms of a learning or
a new feeling?
Each of us has a unique value and we
became teachers or educators for a totally
abstract reason. You have to ask yourself
the question, 'why do I want to do this?'.
No one can answer for you but I bet as
the voyage unfolds the original answer
will see trite. It was a particularly good
symposium experience for me this time.
I felt I was given creative freedom but
I could feel some folks were aching to
express their own creativity. Talking to
attendees after shows they felt this was
missing from their professional lives but
‘Hot off the Press’ was a new insight as to
what is possible for them.
For more information visit
www.redken.com.au
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