A Celebration of
Uniqueness
Strength
Community
When issuing an invitation to his fellow artists to join a 2020 photo shoot, Ammon Carver, chief artistic director, Ulta Beauty, says the response was an immediate, unanimous, and resounding “yes!”
“The urge to create and to be together was so strong,” Carver says. “We missed each other tremendously.”
This photo shoot with the Ulta Beauty Pro Team took place in Chicago, and the artists traveled from all points to work on a delivering a message that they felt was important and timely. The resulting collection speaks to the cultural conversation and examination taking place in our industry and our world around diversity, equity, and inclusivity.
“With such a heavy hitting team, my role isn’t to dictate but to facilitate the collaboration,” Carver explains. “When preparing for a photo shoot, we usually toss around a few ideas for a while, but it only took one Zoom call and one quick conversation to agree on a message for this collection. We wanted it to speak to unity, not uniformity, and to remind people that at Ulta Beauty, everyone is welcome.”
Starting with a photo of dancers as their inspiration, the artists worked to choregraph images that celebrated different skin tones and to find hair-as-hero moments. It involved precise placement of the models, of the hair, and an all-in commitment.
shapes
HUES
Transition of
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“It was one of the hardest shoots we have done, and one of the most rewarding. But it was magic. When we got to the last shot, it was an explosion of tears.”
Carver hopes the unnamed collection will speak for itself and in different ways. “The message will land based on what you relate to in it. Whatever it says to people, we are just so happy to put it out there.”
—Ammon Carver, Chief Artistic Director
Nothing was finished in post-production; we did it all in the moment, working on one model at a time, making minute changes to body position.”
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—Nick Stenson, SVP, Store & Services Operations
Everyone is beautiful and we’re a diverse team celebrating diversity at its best.”
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Photographer: Richard Monsieurs
Wardrobe: Jennifer Daniel
Makeup: Deney Adam and Dmitry Potapov
Nails: Ashley Crowe
Hair: Nick Stenson, Ammon Carver, Sean Godard, Danielle Keasling, Sonya Dove, Pekela Riley , David Lopez
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Ulta Beauty Pro Team: Behind the Inspiration
Click to listen to these Ulta Beauty Pro Team members talk about creating and collaborating on this shoot together.
More Inspiration From the Ulta Beauty Pro Team
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More Inspiration From the Ulta Beauty Pro Team
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