About the Hermès Plein Air Luminous Matte Skincare Foundation
“Inspired by my native Greece and Louis Kahn’s idea that light makes ‘a room different every second of the day,’ I was drawn to the concept of an inhabited, breathing light, one that lives with the skin that adapts to its surroundings,” Hermès Beauty creative director Gregoris Pyrpylis explains of the maison’s latest debut. “From the bright, sun-washed glare of Athens to the blue-grey light of Paris, Plein Air was created to move seamlessly through changing environments.” Shaped by a desire to honor the skin’s own light rather than mask or alter it, Pyrpylis explains that radiant skin has always been at the heart of the Hermès philosophy. “By respecting the skin’s inherent light, Plein Air enhances natural beauty in any condition, allowing the complexion to glow effortlessly without being obscured.”
This launch is the brand’s second complexion offering, off the heels of its Plein Air Natural Enhancing Complexion Balm. While that 2022 formula was in more tinted sunscreen territory, this new hero is more grown up—sophisticated in both its offering and finish.
As the name suggests, this features an ingredients list that rivals your favorite face serum. Its comprised of 82% skin-care ingredients; chief among them are high-molecular weight hyaluronic acid, niacinamide, and white mulberry extract to lock in moisture, minimize water loss, and keep the complexion feeling fresh and comfortable. This skin-care base, Pyrpylis adds, allows the foundation to enhance essential skin factors including hydration, suppleness, firmness, elasticity, smoothness and plumpness, while maintaining the performance and finish expected of a high-quality complexion product. “The balance ensures makeup never masks the complexion but instead works in harmony with it,” he says.
Designed to melt instantly into skin, all of this is spun into a lightweight cream that deposits medium, buildable luminous matte coverage meant to last for up to 16 hours. While “luminous matte” might feel like an oxymoron, it really hints to the best of both finishes. It’s naturally veiled without a “glow” effect in a way that feels controlled, “leaving the skin looking balanced, in just the right shade, without too much shine or texture.” This contrast, for what it’s worth, inspired the foundation’s bottle: frosted on one end, transparent on the other.
As for shades, this is available in 34 shades spread across five color intensities ranging from light to deep. Within each intensity level are three undertones (cool, neutral, and warm), so the range can suit an inclusive range of skin tones.
Our Experience With the Hermès Plein Air Luminous Matte Skincare Foundation
Ever the skeptic, I went into my preview of this foundation with an open mind. I have a medium-deep complexion with a neutral skewing undertone that formulators tend to forget in shade ranges, so I’m often left to work with something too warm. Well, sat on a makeup artist’s stool at Hermès HQ, I was recording myself when the pro started applying the foundation. Looking at my face through my camera, I kid you not, I couldn’t tell where my skin ended and the foundation began. Such shade accuracy can be attributed to two things: Firstly, Hermès designed this range based on an in-depth study of the six universal phototypes from the lightest to the darkest (phototypes I to VI); and secondly, the formula is meant to adapt seamlessly to a wide range of skin tones for a refined finish that closely matches each individual’s complexion. Fortunately, I got to leave the appointment with the magical foundation in tow.
One week later, armed with shade 63W sitting pristinely in its iconic orange box, I couldn’t stop thinking about a nugget of information I took away from the preview. Plein Air not only adjusts your skin tone, but to your skin’s needs as you wear it to ensure comfortable 16-hour wear. So, before heading to work, I sought out on a wear test of my own.