Who Is Pat McGrath and Why Is Her Porcelain Doll Makeup Going Viral?

design: Katie Huang

Behind the scenes of the beauty titan’s groundbreaking work.

by RACHEL GAUDREAU ★ FEBRUARY 27, 2024

If someone were to ask, “What do you think of when you hear the name Pat McGrath?,” do you think of the full face of Pat McGrath Labs makeup Taylor Swift reportedly wears during the Eras Tour? Or Pat McGrath’s iconic celebrity red carpet makeup looks—like when Pat McGrath fully bedazzled Doja Cat  in red Swarovski Crystals for a Schiaparelli show fully bedazzled (my personal Roman empire). Maybe you are familiar with Pat McGrath viral porcelain doll makeup for Maison Margiela's most recent show. Remarkably, Pat McGrath is responsible for all of it, and it’s time we acknowledge her dominance in the beauty industry. 

Born and raised in North Hampton, UK by her Jamaican immigrant mother, Pat McGrath grew up learning how to apply makeup by mixing her own foundation and testing which products looked ashy on her skin. Growing up in the 70s and 80s, products and shades were not designed for darker skin, so McGrath learned how to experiment with makeup from her mother. Astonishingly, McGrath has no formal training as a makeup artist. She credits her mother with instilling her passion for makeup and fashion.

Her breakthrough in the beauty industry came when musician Caron Wheeler asked McGrath to drop everything and go to Japan to work as her makeup artist. This opportunity led McGrath to meet Edward Enninful who, at the time, was the fashion director of i-D Magazine and later became the Editor in Chief of British Vogue. From there, McGrath’s career grew exponentially.

McGrath began working with luxury brands soon after working for Enningful. Notably, she spent the 90s working with Prada and Miu Miu as the makeup artist for their fashion shows. In 1999, she created and released a makeup line with Giorgio Armani. 

Her legendary partnership with John Galliano, the creative director for Dior in the early 2000s, led to groundbreaking work that artfully blended  on the runway. In 2004, she was named Global Cosmetics Creative Design Director for Procter & Gamble, the fourth largest company in the personal care sector in 2023 according to Statista. 

She launched her own makeup brand, Pat McGrath Labs, in 2015 which highlights diversity and inclusion in every product. 

In 2017, she became a Beauty Editor-at-Large for British Vogue, and in 2021, she became the first makeup artist to receive the honor Dame of the British Empire, the equivalent of knighthood for women. 

She’s worked with almost every luxury brand you can think of and A-list celebrities like Sarah Jessica Parker, Naomi Cambell, Oprah, Bella Hadid, Taylor Swift, etc. She’s also received countless awards and honors. Trust me, I would list them all if I could, but that would take hours.

If you're not already stunned, Pat McGrath and John Galliano are turning heads again at Maison Margiela's SS24 show which is being heralded as the return of fashion as an art form. The makeup took glass skin to another level, as models were made to look like porcelain dolls. When the makeup look reached TikTok, it immediately went viral, and for good reason. Videos of the runway and the behind-the-scenes showed models having their face airbrushed with makeup, peeling the makeup off like a peel-away face mask. Videos also spread across the internet of people sharing their embarrassment over how little they knew about Pat McGrath. Some thought she was a man and some didn’t realize the extent to which her work has affected the beauty industry, especially in terms of diversity and inclusion.

In case you’re ambitious enough to recreate the porcelain doll look, she prepped the models skin with Pat McGrath Labs Divine Skin: Rose 001TM, The Essence before airbrushing on a combination of water, Proot Calendula Peel Off Mask, Freeman Renewing Cucumber Peel-Off Gel Mask, Daggett & Ramsdell Tea Tree Peel Off Mask, Que Bella Pineapple Hydrating Pineapple Peel Off Mask, and Skin Illustrator Clear Gloss. The final product: a mesmerizing look that captivated the entire internet.

If this is news to you, you are not alone. For most of us who were not alive or were very young for Pat McGrath’s breakthrough in the fashion and beauty industry, we hear her name mentioned by celebrities and the media, but are not aware of her impact. As the porcelain doll makeup look went viral, Pat McGrath’s story went viral as well.

Pat McGrath has been working behind the scenes in the fashion and beauty industries for over 30 years. She has pushed boundaries to ensure a diverse and inclusive space that she did not have growing up. Her story is inspiring and her work astounding. So, the next time you think of Pat McGrath, think of her as the groundbreaking, “Mother of Modern Makeup” idol that she is.