41 years ago today, Lupita Nyong’o was born and destined to claim her Hollywood crown. First starring in the Kenyan television series Shuga, the Kenyan-Mexican actress then graduated from the Yale School of Drama before landing a role as Patsey in the powerful horror film, 12 Years A Slave. Known for her profound performances, Nyong’o has held such intense, convincing roles– from Marvel’s Black Panther to Jordan Peele’s US– representing Black women in TV and Film, while captivating us all with her mesmerizing beauty.
Since 2013, all eyes have been on her. Appearing at the BAFTA Awards late that year, she showcased beauty in the color brown with deep, glistening lipstick and a touch of sheer blue eyeshadow. In the 2010s, Nyong’o reinvented lip pigments– from polished pink at the 12 Years A Slave premiere in Los Angeles to glazed orange at the 2014 Vanity Fair Oscar Party. Later that year, she was crowned as People’s Most Beautiful, honoring her signature short cut; which has taken on new styles over the years.
At the 45th NAACP Awards, she parted and sectioned her pillowy kinks into two, then later on appeared at the 19th Annual Critics Choice Awards with a sharp widow’s peak. She’s been seen in sculptural, gravity-defying looks (cue the 2016 Costume Institute Gala), bantu-parted buns, twine-wrapped braids, and even a campy gold pick look at the 2019 Met Gala. As time went on, her makeup looks grew more experimental; sporting red eyebrows and lips at the US premiere with one of our favorite looks a few years later at the 2021 Met Gala: denim-toned eyeshadow to pair with a Lorna Simpson-inspired afro.
Below, celebrate Lupita Nyong’o’s 41st birthday with her most iconic beauty looks from 2013 to today.
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