How ‘Drag Race’ Makeup Artist David Petruschin Spends Six Hours Transforming RuPaul With a ‘Complete Reconstruction’

Among the first people to arrive on set at “RuPaul’s Drag Race” are RuPaul and her makeup artist, David Petruschin, better known as “Raven.”

During the show’s FYC event, which included a set visit to the location where “Drag Race” films, Petruschin explained what it takes to transform RuPaul. He said, “We spend about six hours in there. The biggest part of getting into drag is makeup.”

Fans of the show will recognize Petruschin; he competed on the second season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” in 2010 and on “All Stars” Season 1. In 2017, he became RuPaul’s personal makeup artist and has been contouring and applying makeup ever since. He won the Emmy for Outstanding Contemporary Makeup For A Variety, Nonfiction Or Reality Program (Non-Prosthetic) in 2020.

Transforming RuPaul requires a “complete reconstruction,” and out of those six hours, 45 minutes are spent on foundation – “blending, creating and reshaping the face.”

During that time, Petruschin revealed that Ru doesn’t scroll or play on her phone, but instead “she closes her eyes.”