Considered one of the industries leading trendsetters, Eugene Souleiman is a true visionary. His potential is best met when he’s pushed outside of his comfort zone, and his constant stream of ideas are considered a source of inspiration for craft hairdressers, worldwide. So you might be wondering: what inspires him to create such elegant yet avant-garde looks? The key, Eugene will tell you, is always staying true to your own aesthetic. “I don’t get nervous because I love what I do,” he confirms. Read on to discover what moves him to greatness – and learn how you can open yourself to the world, as a constant source of inspiration.
With a portfolio that’s packed full of some of the industries most prestigious assignments, Eugene Souleiman serves to inspire – and his outside of the box art motivates fellow craft hairdressers to reach for greater heights. And some might say that his success is a direct result of his genuine love for the craft. “For me,” says Eugene, “I don’t really know what’s work and what’s play. It’s all melting into the same thing, because I really love what I do,” he says. In his free time – which he emphasizes that he gladly has very little of – Eugene enjoys taking in various forms of art. “I love to go to galleries and listen to music.” Basically, “I’m into life. Everything inspires me.”
When Eugene says that everything inspires him, he quite literally means everything. In fact, he most enjoys taking inspiration from unlikely sources. “What inspires me, is taking an idea from somewhere – and just looking at it – that’s completely so far away from what I do, and finding a place for it in what I do.” Though that explanation might seem vague, he elaborates by sharing an offbeat example – and in the process – opens up a window into his eccentric and clever mind. “My daughter was playing with these miniature balloons, and she was waving them around her head.” That simple act got him thinking: “That would be cool if I put some balloons in the hair.” So he swiftly appropriated a bag and got to work. “I was braiding them into a weave,” he remembers. “It kind of looked like a Grecian statue; the little balloons looked like little grapes. Almost like fruit in hair.” He liked the results so much that he took the project a step further, and ordered his own stash of miniature balloons. “I found these balloons that were flesh colored,” he says, “and [the results] I’m told, were ‘sick.’”
“So for me,” says Eugene, “I don’t really have a place that I go to, because my head is everywhere. It really, really is,” he affirms. “I just think if you experience a lot, and you enjoy [life],” he says, the inspiration “comes when it needs to come.” He’s an advocate of letting life – and hair – flow where they may. “I never really for anyone, or try to lock people down, into what I want to do. I’m quite happy to learn from someone else’s [point of view]. “I love the idea that education can come from anywhere.”
So on inspiration, Eugene emphasizes that you can “get ideas from anywhere. It just depends on whether you’re open to receiving them. If you’re closed,” he concludes, “they’re never going to happen.”
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