Liu Wen (model)
Chinese Supermodel
Liu Wen (Chinese: 刘雯) (born 27 January 1988) is a Chinese model. In 2012, The New York Times dubbed her "China’s first bona fide supermodel". She was the first Chinese model to walk the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, the first East Asian spokesmodel for Estée Lauder cosmetics, and the first Asian model to ever make Forbes magazine's annual highest-paid models list. In 2017, Liu became the second Chinese model to ever appear on the cover of American Vogue, and the first to be featured on the front cover rather than foldout.
Quotes
edit- I hope that when people see Asian women, they realize we are all different. A lot of time with Caucasian people, they just group us together as Asian. But even with different cities in China, people have different personalities.... We look Asian, but we still look different. We don't look the same.
- "Chinese Model Liu Wen Would Like to Remind Everyone That Not All Asians Look the Same" in Allure (2 March 2016)
- Before I modeled, I never thought I was beautiful. Even right now, I don’t think I’m beautiful. I think it’s my personality that makes my beauty different and unique. If you look in the past, Chinese people have always considered things like big eyes, pointy nose, or big lips beautiful. I had the same thoughts as a child watching movies.
- But as you grow up, you understand more about what beauty is. It’s not just about the outside. Your look changes depending on your confidence, and then your beauty changes.
- I don’t think I’m beautiful. People probably think I’m cute because I have dimples and am friendly and always smiling. But beauty is different.
- I dressed more like a tomboy in very slouchy clothing. I was very humble because I didn’t think of myself as beautiful. It wasn’t something I even thought about.
- People assume modeling is about being thin and pretty, but it’s about, how can you express yourself? Can you radiate strength and confidence? Personality is most important.
- I was studying tourism at college and wanted to travel the world as a tour guide – that was my dream! But actually sometimes modeling feels quite similar, because I travel so much – probably even more than tour guiding.
- My parents are very supportive of me, I’m their only child, of course, so I always have to call them before I leave and when I arrive somewhere. Sometimes I still don’t think they really understand what I’m doing! I think they’re just happy that I’m happy and I love my job.
- For me, success is not only defined by what others deem you as, but also who you consider yourself to be. I don’t think I received a perfect score on any exam yet, and it’s also possible that I’ll never achieve that, but I’ll still feel satisfied at the end.
- This career has given me a lot of happiness and I’ve fallen in love with it. Of course, there is joy in fame, but there are plenty of difficult periods to endure as well. It’s not unusual to feel down or stressed, but I use those as motivators to remain steadfast and look ahead.
- My responsibility as a supermodel is to put fame aside and use my actions to encourage those who might need support, so that others also feel motivated on their own journeys.
- During the first decade, I began my journey as a model. In the second decade, I fell in love with this industry. For this third one, I hope to contribute and give back to the industry in positive ways.
- I might like to try things I haven’t attempted before, whether it’s working with new production teams or utilising my own ideas for innovative designs. I would enjoy a path like that, where I can take part in the creative process.
External links
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Encyclopedic article on Liu Wen (model) on Wikipedia
Media related to Liu Wen on Wikimedia Commons
