Kevin Murphy

Talking with the celebrity stylist and man behind like-named line Kevin.Murphy

By Melissa Brazier

This story begins in 1984, when a young Australian hairstylist, Kevin Murphy, was working as a freelancer on his first big shoot for Vogue, an eight-page spread about fragrance. Nearly 25 years later, this stylist has grown into an international name–coiffing the Hollywood elite, working with the biggest players in fashion, launching an eponymous line of styling products (available through Toronto Barber and Beauty Supply, tbbs.ca, and International Beauty Services, 800.642.3818) and winning Master at the 2007 Australian Hair Fashion Awards.

From the start, Murphy’s career has been anything but subtle. Styling everyone from Cate Blanchett to Rebecca Romijn, he has become known as the king of undone beach hair. Murphy says his top priority has always been “to stay true to myself on a creative level and try not to be too influenced by what others are doing.”

This couldn’t be clearer in his most recent campaign, titled They Shoot Redheads, Don’t They? Although most creative directors prefer to work with a clear vision, Murphy gathered five of the top Australian hairstylists and let their creativity reign. “I wanted to push the boundaries of texture. I didn’t let anyone have a finished look in mind, I just told them to go for it,” says Murphy. The result is a collection of fashion-forward images (see them on salon52.ca) that play with the notion of texture but still have strong commercial appeal.

Obsessed with achieving the perfect hairstyle, Murphy launched his own line of styling products in 2003. Most recently, he and a team of chemists have been working on an ingredient that will protect hair up to 400 degrees without adding any weight. Murphy says, “It has been a long road, but we have finally found a way. This ingredient will be the centrepiece of a new range of styling products and leave-ins all derived from soy and wheat.”

Switching gears from expanding his line of products, Murphy has also opened the Ozdare Academy in Melbourne, Australia, and hopes to introduce a second academy in the near future. “Ours is an industry that seems reluctant to change, and we hope to bring forth a new set of fashion-focused and service-oriented skills. I’m a big believer in retraining. It’s all about acquiring skills that are up-to-the-minute.”