Being a Make-up Artist - What does it mean to you?

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I have been a Make-up artist for close on 10 years now. In that time I have worked in many different sectors from fashion photo shoots to film productions. Unfortunately I have an illness that is making working in this industry increasingly more difficult. So I have started to think about a change of career and that in return brought me to the question. What does being a Make-up Artist mean to me? Ever since I was little I was creative in some form or another. I painted, wrote poems and stories (still do), I used to sing in a well known German choir and I played the theater (was an extra at the "Mainzer Staatstheater" a large playhouse in the German city of Mainz). So my life was always about the arts. Make-up was not an obvious choice for me. I never was the kind of girl that would wear mummy's make-up or doll herself up. Even when I was a teenager, my make-up was minimal. Why I decided to go to a school for Make-up Artists, I really have no idea. I know I must have had some sort of reason but I forgot. I am glad I did go though, as I have definitely found my niche! I loved it. The human face is the most versatile canvas there is. Never the same, every face is unique and I have the "power", the skill to transform it. I can make beautiful, I can make ugly, I can change not only how a person is perceived, but also how a person perceives themselves. I can create art on a human being. Of course, a lot of the work of a make-up artist is "mass production". How to quickly make someone look great for a photo shoot, a news cast... That is why I have a few photographers, that I work on the projects we want to do with. So again, what does it actually mean to me? The thought of not being able to do it anymore terrifies me. It is such an important part of my life. To me it is not just a job, it is not about the glamor of meeting famous people or the fact that I can say "I work in film". I am an artist! Make-up is my form of expressing myself. And as theatric as it might sound, Make-up Artistry IS my life! In 2005 I have founded the Visage Jolie - School for Make-up Artists and I guess that even when I can't work anymore myself, I am glad that I will still be able to teach others.