Mark Bustos hasn’t made a name for himself by being conventional.

You’ve heard of Bustos before not just because he is arenowned stylist—working at some of the most prestigious salons in the country, cutting hair for designers and celebrities—or a salon owner at Silver Vine Room in Summit, New Jersey. More than likely, you learned about Bustos because of his work outside of the salon.

About six years ago, Bustos began cutting hair for the homeless in New York City. At first, he would wander down the Bowery in lower Manhattan, becoming familiar with many residents. In 2012, after a trip home to the Philippines to visit family, he realized his movement wasn’t limited to one street, one borough or one city—he would take his movement global.

This movement is now called #BeAwesomeToSomebody, Bustos’ charity. He documents his worldwide transformations on @markbustos, with this hashtag tagged at the end of his captions that gives a snapshot of the human behind the hair cut. He makes it a point to go out and cut hair every Sunday when in NYC.

Bustos cuts hair on the streets and in lavish salons. His ability to see everyone as equally human, as well as his humility and lack of ego, allow him to instill confidence inclients in either arena.

To express his full potential as an artist, Bustos entered NAHA 2019. His men’s collection was a finalist in the Men’s Hairstylist of the Year category. The collection showcases Bustos’ cutting prowess and versatility, as well as his casual style. The back story is something interesting as well.

“It was 7 p.m. on a Saturday, the evening before my scheduled NAHA shoot, and my third model dropped out,” Bustos says. “My only solution: Go for a walk on the streets of New York City and find a model.”

After approaching and being rejected by a handful of prospective models, a handsome young man caught his eye at Chelsea Market on 15th Street. Bustos introduced himself and learned his name was Palace.

“I cut right to the chase and told him exactly how wecan both help each other out,” Bustos says. “Palace replied,‘I was actually getting a hair cut tomorrow and I want to be a model someday. I’m only 17 years old, let me go insideand get my guardian and ask for permission to be a part of your photo shoot.’”

Within minutes Palace’s guardian, Kay (his older cousin), gave permission to attend the shoot. Kay told Bustos that Palace is from Washington, D.C. and staying part-time at a foster home in Harlem while finalizing the adoption process.The photoshoot was a success and, in his way of paying it forward, Bustos sent Palace’s information to a friend—a NYC casting director.

“In a few days, Palace had a modeling contract, and two weeks later he walked his first fashion show with Kith in collaboration with Tommy Hilfiger at New York Fashion Week,” Bustos says.

Bustos chose three models for his NAHA collection with different hair types: straight, wavy and highly textured. He wanted to showcase different hair types to demonstrate his versatility and control in working with shorter hair to create three types of movement.

Movement and silhouette are the collection’s main focuses. All finishes have short backs and sides that blend into the shapes starting from a skin-tight length into longer lengths on top. Click through the gallery to see all three looks, and to read a bit about each. 

CREDITS:
Hair: Mark Bustos
Photographer: Richard Monsieurs
Makeup: Amy Chin, Christina Natale
Fashion styling: Mark Bustos