Cultural variety shows and historical dramas have opened up a new trend of Chinese celebrities' traditional costume styling.
Starting with “National Treasure” in 2017, celebrities frequently time travel to various dynasties to experience the life of ancient people.
Yang Zi acted in many Xianxia dramas (such as Ashes of Love, and Immortal Samsara), but in “National Treasure”, she had the opportunity to talk with Princess Wencheng across time and space. The appropriate gold ornaments, together with the flower inlay between her eyebrows, highlight her dignified and luxurious side.
Zhang Zifeng, transformed into a Qing Dynasty astronomer, Wang Zhen Yi. With her plain attire and calm and quiet temperament, you seem to be able to see the majestic universe in her heart.
The 2019 suspense drama “The Longest Day In Chang'an“, the thrilling investigation process, with a rich display of Tang Dynasty styling, adds a lot of features to this drama.
In the show “Meet the temple of heaven” 2019, has a number of actresses changing into Qing Dynasty attire, which combined with the scenery of the Temple of Heaven, really gives a feeling of history shining into reality.
Compared to Xianxia and Wuxia dramas, cultural shows and historical dramas usually place more emphasis on the historical background and also on combining historical facts. Experts and scholars together with the program team to devote their efforts in, makeup and costumes naturally to be more elaborate, more restored.
01 Celebrities' Tang Dynasty Hanfu Look
“Shu Hua Li De Zhong Guo (书画里的中国, China in Painting and Calligraphy)”, which aired last year, has been described as a pilgrimage of Chinese history and culture. In addition to the output of knowledge, the program is also good at creating the peak of the female stars of ancient costumes.
Accompanied by the poetry of poet Li Bai, Zhou Jieqiong slowly came out in a Tang Dynasty Hanfu dress. Qixiong ruqun and Huadian embellishments show the delicate posture of a woman in the Tang Dynasty.
Zhou Jieqiong is a typical classical beauty with a sprawling and atmospheric look, a slightly square face with volume features, and Mianyan makeup on the corners of her mouth, just like a historical Tang Dynasty music court girl.
Yu Shuxin dressed up as Yang Guifei in the program. The suitability of round face and Tang Dynasty attire has been deeply rooted in people's hearts. With rounded lines of features and full cheeks, she perfectly presents the beauty of the Tang Dynasty.
But she is not the charming Yang Yu Huan of film and television works, but more the bright and playful Yang Yu Huan of her teenage years.
When it comes to ancient women, most people may associate them with a shy and delicate image, but Tang Dynasty women were different. They were more daring and confident and liked to show themselves. The clothes were bold and gorgeous, the makeup was colorful and varied, and there were many different types of makeup and eyebrows.
The drama “Palace of Desire” took a lot of effort to show the prosperity and costumes of the Tang Dynasty, such as the two different periods of Princess Taiping.
The teenage period is portrayed by Zhou Xun, with light-colored dresses, slanted bangs, and makeup colors that are pink and lovely, highlighting the hydrated real skin texture and very playful. Occasionally there are some exaggerated styling, head feathers, or women dressed as men, but all in her body shows dexterity.
The adult Princess Taiping is played by Chen Hong, and her graceful and rich appearance comes out. The bright-colored dresses add a bit of aura to her, and the bare shoulders are charming but not vulgar. The beauty of the Palace of Desire is not in realism, but in highlighting the charm of Tang Dynasty women.
The drama “The Longest Day In Chang'an“, on the other hand, highlights the opulence of the Tang Dynasty.
First of all, it is reflected in the extravagant makeup, the amount of blush is not restrained at all, spreading from the bridge of the nose to the cheeks and sweeping to the sides. The thick eyebrows that go straight to the temples and the large Huadian on the forehead are highlighting the boldness and grandeur of the women of that era.
In the drama, even the group actors are wearing similar styles of makeup. No matter how many shots, they are all so exquisite. If you have watched this drama, you will feel that they are the real noblewomen living in Chang'an City, and look at their different eyebrow shapes, which also confirm the attainment of Tang Dynasty women in makeup.
02 Celebrities' Song Dynasty Hanfu Look
“Shu Hua Li De Zhong Guo” recreated the beauty of Song Dynasty style in the program: Chen Du Ling. She is dressed in a blue dress, simple and plain, without too much decoration.
Chen Duling was born with the softness of beauty, her looks are very oriental, plus her small figure and thin body type, which is more in line with the beauty in the Song Dynasty paintings.
The ability to value their careers and still live exquisitely is the most common characteristic of Song dynasty women. The broadcast of “A Dream of Splendor” a while ago and the classic Song dynasty drama “The Story of Ming Lan” are both supporting evidence.
Zhao Pan'er's career and sober mind need not be mentioned, but more importantly, the character's ethereal and unforgettable look. Whether it is the light makeup on the way to Bianjing or the thick makeup of the wind rescuing her girlfriends, it is all coordinated and elegant. The light-colored flat eyebrows are able to neutralize the brightness of the red lips.
03 Celebrities' Qing Dynasty Costume Look
In addition to Hanfu, the traditional costume styling of the Qing Dynasty has appeared in dramas and variety shows with great frequency.
There have been several versions of Qianlong's Imperial Noble Consort Chunhui in drama productions, one version is Su Jinghao in “Story of Yanxi Palace“, played by Wang Yuanke. Another is Consort Chunhui from “Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace“, played by Hu Ke.
But when this character is placed in “Shu Hua Li De Zhong Guo”, Li Yitong presents another version.
The makeup was not adjusted according to history, but wearing the traditional Qi dress with a yellow and blue color scheme, together with the complicated beaded headdress, the nobility was immediately shown, demonstrating the royal style to the audience.
Of course, bright colors may not be the optimal solution for beauty, for example, in the painting “Twelve Beauties“, the harem concubines with deep purple, lake blue, and other colors to balance the bright pink color, more dignified and calm, more emphasis on elegance than gaudy.
With more and more cultural variety shows and historical dramas, people have a deeper understanding of traditional hanfu and traditional Chinese clothing. This type of subject matter may have just emerged, but it bodes well for traditional costume lovers, who can not only see more celebrity traditional costume styling, but also learn about culture-related knowledge in depth, which makes people look forward to it.