Celebrity Makeup Artist 'Mama Makeup' Accused of Stabbing Sister with Umbrella

Celebrity makeup artist Sharon "Mama Makeup" Gault has worked for Madonna, Michael Jackson, and David LaChapelle. This week, the Santa Monica Police Department arrested Gault for allegedly stabbing her sister with an umbrella at the home they share together.

According to TMZ and the Daily Mail, Gault and her sister began arguing with each other on Monday evening. At some point, Gault allegedly grabbed a wooden hanger and umbrella and then attacked her sister with the household objects, using the umbrella in a "stabbing motion." Santa Monica Police Lieutenant Rodriguez told the Mail that Gault's sister lacked visible injuries. Over the phone, an employee of the Santa Monica City Attorney's Office told Broadly that they are currently reviewing the case.

The event is worthy of a John Waters film—and Gault is often compared to Divine—but the arrest sent Gault, her family, and friends into disarray. In the caption of a since-deleted picture on Gault's Instagram account, her daughter—Adelaide Gault, also known as Addy—asked fans to "pray" for her mother. "She was arrested because of my aunt and uncle," she said in a comment. (Adelaide did not return Broadly's request for an interview.) Gault's friend, Kristin Lara, also commented: "This was a family matter. She's suffering from the trauma and loss of her mother. The allegations are simply that: 'allegations.'" Another friend, Jennifer Whitman, has created a Sharon Gault Fund on GoFundMe. "Please help Sharon and Addy," she writes. At press time, the campaign has raised $5.

Gault is known for being a loving single mom in Los Angeles. Two sources tell Broadly that she brags about her daughter Adelaide to everyone from models' boyfriends to the gaggle of homosexuals that comprise her alternative family. Her Instagram consists of pictures of her daughter in her living room and photos from parties with Amanda Lepore, fashion gays, and Pamela Anderson. Last December, Gault dressed as a penguin and painted her face like Divine while performing onstage with Miley Cyrus and Anderson. Both the Baywatch star and Gault are friends and collaborators with the photographer David LaChapelle. In 2010, Gault accompanied him to an Oscar party while wearing a giant bow on her head. She has painted the faces of models in some of his most memorable images, including the Lady Gaga Rolling Stone cover.

Gault brings a distinctive avant-garde look to these famous faces of pop culture: colorful eye shadow, splattered colors, and one shade painted on an entire nude body. Her work looks superficial, but a depth shows through. The style hints at the absurdity of Gault's personal life. In a 2010 PopCandiesTV video, Gault walks around Los Angeles with her daughter, who wears a hat knitted to resemble a baby seal, and a young male whom she identifies as "the biggest Lady Gaga fan." Gault holds a milkshake; her black T-shirt hangs off her shoulder. She says Gaga called her through God and that she made "Gaga hummus" in "honor of Gaga." "I love to share about Michael Jackson. Heal the world and make it a better place," Gault says. "I want the world to be shiny and happy."

A sense of darkness has always shined through Gault's happy, colorful work, though, which is probably why she has consistently worked for American icons for over 26 years. She initially came to prominence for her infamous appearance in Madonna's groundbreaking 1990 documentary Truth or Dare, which chronicles the pop star's Blonde Ambition World Tour. Wearing oversized T-shirts, Gault painted Madonna's face for most nights of the tour, gossiping with Madonna as she did her makeup.

In the documentary, Gault says she got roofied and raped at a club during the New York portion of the tour. When Madonna heard the news, she mocked the makeup artist, blaming her for getting assaulted. The moment has haunted Madonna and assured Gault's place in pop culture history. Tragedy hovers over the life of the woman who makes celebrities' faces look "shiny and happy."

As Gault wrote in the caption of an Instagram post of her crying, "Sad."