Hong Kong make-up artist on Marilyn Manson and horror movie influences, and how competing in BBC’s Glow Up won parents over
- At the age of 25, Ophelia Liu at last has parental approval for her career choice, after years spent concealing her interest in make-up from them
- The otherworldly looks she creates have made her a fan favourite on the BBC show. She talks about why freedom of expression matters to her and to Hong Kong
As a teenager, Ophelia Liu would sneak into the bathrooms with some face paint after school and decorate her face with bold colours. She loved how enjoyable putting make-up on felt and it became her creative outlet, but her parents disapproved of her wearing make-up out of the house, so she’d wipe her face off before coming home.
Now the 25-year-old Hong Kong native doesn’t need to conceal her secret pastime – she’s applying make-up in front of cameras as a contestant on the hit BBC TV show Glow Up: Britain’s Next Make-up Star, and has continued to impress each episode with alien-inspired cyberpunk looks.
Liu will be judged by beauty industry heavyweights Val Garland and Dominic Skinner, along with nine other aspiring make-up artists competing for a contract to assist some of the world’s leading make-up artists.
Spotted through Instagram, she beat thousands to earn a spot on the show, and is a fan favourite.
Although they’re supportive now, her parents initially believed that Liu’s passion for make-up was an act of teenage rebellion and couldn’t be a profession. It was only after the show’s debut that she got their approval.
Make-up first came to her through discovering punk rock, and American industrial-metal musician Marilyn Manson. The first time she saw Manson she was struck by how different from mainstream pop stars he looked.