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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Katie Rosseinsky

Can we please stop applauding celebrities like Meghan Markle for posing makeup-free?

Is posing without make-up on a magazine cover really an empowering act of bravery? - (Malick Bodian/Harpers Bazar)

Meghan Markle’s latest move? Posing on the cover of the American edition of fashion mag Harper’s Bazaar. As far as high-end cover shoots go, it’s pretty minimalist, with the Duchess of Sussex perched on a stool in front of a grey background, dressed in a black Dior jacket with her hair swept back from her face.

And it’s her face – or, more pressingly, what’s on or not on her face – that has got people talking. Because, in keeping with this pared-back aesthetic, Meghan appears to be pretty much makeup-free, skin, brows that are sculpted-but-not-too-sculpted and a smattering of freckles. I should add, of course, for accuracy’s sake, that Harper’s has credited the veteran makeup artist Diane Kendal for the shoot, so it’s probably not the case that the Duchess just rolled out of bed beforehand, but the overall feel is natural and low-key.

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