December's American Vogue features eight of the highest-profile Asian models from China, Japan and South Korea who are, according to the magazine, "redefining traditional concepts of beauty."Asian faces have become more prominent in the fashion industry nowadays, due to the Asian market's rising significance to luxury brands.
Among the eight, 22-year-old Chinese model Liu Wen standing 179 centimeters is undoubtedly the brightest star. She is ranked No. 10 on the world's Top 50 Models list by models.com, the highest ranking ever for an Asian model. On Wednesday, she appeared on American Vogue's "Impact List of 2010" alongside Lady Gaga and Alexander McQueen. The list selected the top 10 people, faces and events that made an impact on fashion this year.
Liu was the first and only "angel" of Asian descent to walk the runway in Victoria's Secret's winged outfits, both in 2009 and last month in New York. The Hunan Province native continued to push boundaries for Asian models when she was named the global spokesperson for Estee Lauder earlier this year. Best known for her sunshine smile and sculptural, diamond-shaped cheekbones, Liu was the first Asian face in the history of the American beauty products powerhouse.
Liu made her official "spokesmodel" debut in late November at an Estee Lauder gala in Beijing for the launch of the brand's latest "Pure Color Metamorphosis" makeup collection designed specially for the Chinese market.
On the catwalk she wore a simple, elegant white goddess gown and impressed the audience with her beauty and demure appearance. She then walked to the front of the stage, struck a pose and flashed a brilliant smile as the audience cheered.
The stage had been set up just for her.
Later that night, Liu wrote on Weibo (the Chinese equivalent of Twitter): "People say a woman is happiest on her wedding day. But I was very happy today!! ... It was the brightest day ever for me, a day I will cherish all my life."
The next day when we sat down for a face-to-face interview, I asked about what she wrote. She laughed: "Well, actually I don't know because I've never had a boyfriend ... I'm a little too busy for that ... but I take Estee Lauder as my lover at the moment. I believe that, in the end, it (a love relationship) is all about fate, like anything else."
She never expected to become Victoria's Secret angel or dreamed of becoming Estee Lauder's spokesperson. She attributed everything to "fate," but everyone knows it's more than destiny.
Liu is hard working. The Chinese stunner began modeling in 2005 and has since appeared in numerous advertising campaigns, runway shows and magazine editorial pages. Chinese media once nicknamed her "Xiu Ba" (Fashion Show Queen) for her hectic schedule during fashion weeks.
A fixture on the runways of New York, Milan and Paris, Liu was reported to have walked a total of 48 shows for the spring/summer 2011 season and 49 for the autumn/winter season that followed.
"My record is six shows in one day at the New York Fashion Week," she recalled. "You have no idea how tiring it can be, especially in a city where everything is new to you. Your cheek is polished by countless brushes; and your hair, too ... It was normal for me to only sleep for three hours a day ... Anyone who has experienced that will probably feel as devastated as I once did."
Her way of battling negative thoughts is to eat. Name anything high in calories and she is a big fan. "I love ice cream, chocolate and chips," she said, not joking but apparently quite serious, "they make me happy, charge me up and bring me confidence."
That's another thing one likes about Liu - she doesn't fake things. Wearing an airy Derek Lam dress from the designer's resort 2011 collection, she looked toned, fit and healthy - not as bony as many young models who claim to eat a healthy diet with lots of vegetables and do a lot of exercise, if not yoga or Pilates.