Remembering John Sahag 20 Years – 2025
Photos Helen Oppenheim. Collage helenoppenheim.com
It is 20 years since the legendary John Sahag left us to do the hair of the angels (January 2, 1952 – June 15, 2005). The Lebanese-born Australian-raised Armenian became famous in Paris as the first internationally-recognized freelance hairdresser. He worked his magic on the heads of the supermodels and superstars of his era and made The Dry Cut famous in his John Sahag Workshops on Madison Avenue in NYC from 1985, active until recently.
This collage shows just some of his magic which made him so famous. It was the last time I saw him, at the IBS Fuse Show in New York, 2003, when I photographed his futuristic butterflies backstage.
Hair was braided, wrapped, twisted, knotted, in butterfly shapes. Meticulously engineered couture hairpieces (which took 4 hairdressers and 4 assistants 4 weeks to create) were cut-up, colored, entwined, tied with elastics and attached to heads, with seams showing, some sprayed with more color, a crazy abstract playful hair mix. Sahag was inspired by the butterfly theme of Gaelyn & Cianfarano’s stunning summer fashions, some in latex, and leather-look recycled bicycle rubber inner tubes.
To see more magical photos by Sahag, to read about him, how-to’s, all with plenty of inspiration, go to Hair Then/John Sahag on this website, helenoppenheim.com
Hair: John Sahag, The John Sahag Workshop, NYC, 2003 … Makeup: Jun Funahashi/L’Atelier … Butterfly Tattoos: Stephanie Tomaz … Fashions Gaelyn & Cianfarani … Fashion Styling: Lisa Von Weise … Photos: Helen Oppenheim
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Rare Girl With a Bug Sahag Photo – 1996
Photo: Eva Mueller
Girl with a bug! Rare unpublished photo of the legendary John Sahag’s Multi-Cut, one of many versions, a fun photo with a bug! “The Multi-Cut is very unruly, throw-away, incredibly interesting with new textures, which will be popular to the next century,” predicted John Sahag, in 1996. How right he was. To see more versions of this, part of Rachel’s Saga Part 2, CLICK HERE
Hair: John Sahag, John Sahag Workshop, 1996 … Color: Jennifer Chune … Makeup: Susan Houser … Fashion Styling: Lisa Von Weisse … Fashions: Elisa Jimenez … Model: Rachel Bick
Photo: Eva Mueller … Produced by Helen Oppenheim
The Legendary John Sahag on Facebook – 2018
Full Credits on Facebook Post
Sandra Smith-Doghmi has posted an accolade to the legendary John Sahag on her Facebook page. When you go there, click on each element to see all – the text, the Gwyneth Paltrow photos as well as the photo of the legendary John Sahag bigger. With Love. To see the original Sandra Facebook page, CLICK HERE And to see the Share on my Facebook page, CLICK HERE
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John Sahag Plays With Texture – 1997
Photos: © Michael Bonacci. Collage by helenoppenheim.com
Rugged and smooth, rough and refined, strong and soft, this was the hair by the legendary John Sahag for Cynthia Rowley’s NY Fashion Week Show, for Fall 1997.
No ordinary ponytail this!! Textured hair, many contrasting shades in slightly mismatched or offbeat tones, was mixed with straight hair for this extraordinary look. “Mostly, it’s all about texture, not curls, not frizz, but movements in odd, interesting ways,” said Sahag at the time – way ahead of his time. For more interesting hair from this show, click here:
Hair: John Sahag, John Sahag Workshop … Makeup: Moyra Mulholland … Photos: Michael Bonacci
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John Sahag Speaks – 1997
Here is the legendary John Sahag in a video thanking editors for an award he couldn’t accept personally because he would be in Paris working on an Issey Miyake fashion show at the same time as the ceremony. For more John Sahag, check About for his bio, HairThen dropdown menu for his amazing work and how-to’s like no other.
Video by Vidcat Productions, 1997.
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