Lucia Pica Is Translating Emotion Into Form With Byredo

After enrolling in a month-long makeup course in her early adulthood, Lucia Pica immediately knew she wanted to step into the beauty industry. To her, makeup wasn't a career path — it was a language she yearned to speak. This principle would later carry on into Pica's work with Byredo — where, as the brand's creative image and makeup partner, she set out to redefine beauty by valuing emotion above all else.

For Byredo, makeup is more than just products — it's a sensorial experience. When Pica initially joined the brand in 2022, this vision led her to translate her evocative feelings into tangible objects. Today, that sentiment has evolved into a desire to further carve out the space Byredo has created through storytelling and its own internal worlds. Most recently, Pica curated the brand's new "Polar Harmony" holiday collection — a physical manifestation of Scandinavian winter along the North Sea.

When it comes to Byredo's carefully-intentional eyeshadow palettes and fragrance-infused lipsticks, feeling is everything. For the "Polar Harmony" collection in particular, Pica envisioned makeup as a creative medium to articulate a sense of intimacy and joy. Like memories, beauty has the power to summon sensorial emotions — and that's something Pica has always acknowledged when ideating products.

Today, Pica's vision for Byredo has extended far beyond arm's length. All without sacrificing function, the brand continues to dream up experiences for all five of the senses. Because of its ability to fixate on the details while simultaneously building entire worlds, Byredo's vivid philosophy will be the reason for its lasting singularity. As the brand further develops and expands, Pica's one hope is that it continues to do so with the same intentionally it was built on.

Ahead, we speak to Lucia Pica about what initially drew her to Byredo and the creative process that made the new holiday collection possible.

On Curating "Polar Harmony"

For me, makeup is a medium to express internal worlds — and the North Sea, in all its stillness and power, mirrored something emotional I wanted to explore. It's vast and mysterious. In the "Polar Harmony" collection, I translated that into a balance of cool tones and warm light — like the golden reflection of a winter sun warmly breaking through and shining on the dark frozen water. Shades like "Marine Dream" and "Blue Haze" carry a chill, but they sit next to "Golden Rêverie" and "Coral Mirage", which feel like warm moments. It's that contrast between the dark sea and the release of light that creates silence, intimacy and joy. 

On Her Vision for Byredo

I was drawn to Byredo because it isn't bound by convention. My vision was to translate emotion into form — to create beauty that feels instinctive, modern and elevated. Over time, that instinct has deepened. It's not just about makeup, it's about storytelling. About crafting objects that people hold close, like memory made tangible.

On the Brand's Affinity for the Sensorial Experience

Because feeling comes before thought. We remember how something made us feel more than how it looked. Texture, scent, colour — these are things that connect us deeply to a present or past experience.

It influences everything. Years of working on so many faces, under so many types of light, have given me a very tactile understanding of how makeup needs to perform. I think about how colour reacts to undertones, how texture sits on the skin after hours of wear, how products can shift your mood. Years of creating collections and working closely with colours and textures have made me deeply connected to their personalities and how they perform. To me, creating a story with color and texture is a language that I use.

On Her Introduction Into Makeup

My very first memory of makeup goes back to when I was around ten. I was completely fascinated by the women around me who wore it — not just the colors, but their gestures, the ritual, the transformation. There was something almost magical about watching them become someone else, or more themselves, through makeup.

I used to visit a neighbor and quietly disappear into her bathroom. I'd spend hours in there, opening drawers, trying everything in her cabinet. Every time, I'd do a full face—foundation, lipstick, shadow — without knowing anything technical, just driven by curiosity and instinct.

As I grew older, that fascination shifted to fashion magazines. I wasn't just drawn to the clothes — I was drawn to the faces. The way makeup could shift a mood, shape an identity, make you feel something. That emotional dimension really stayed with me.

Later, when I moved to London, I enrolled in a one-month makeup course. It was short, but everything clicked. I knew, immediately, that this was what I wanted to do. It felt natural, like something I had already carried inside me for a long time. It wasn't just a job — it was a language I needed to speak.

On Who Byredo Is For

Byredo is for everyone. It's really about freedom — freedom from rules, from prescription, from being told how to look. It's for people who want to discover how they feel. Those who are drawn to beauty that surprises them, that lives beyond convention. I like to think it's for those who find joy in the unexpected — whether that means expressing yourself fully, or choosing a quieter gesture. It's about texture, quality, design — the thought-through craftsmanship and storytelling behind every object. It's about finding the one product that you feel utterly yourself in.

 

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On Her Favorite Project She’s Worked On

Bibliophilia, without question. It's more than a palette — it feels like a journey. There's a rhythm to the 18 shades, almost like turning pages in a story. The name says everything: it's about the love of stories, of color, of layering emotions through texture.

I wanted to create something that felt vast but not overwhelming — easy, intuitive, but full of possibility. You can go soft, you can go bold. The tones are unexpected but connected. There's something strong and delicate at the same time. It's a palette you can live with, return to and always find something new. That, to me, is luxury: something that keeps revealing itself.

On the Future of Byredo

There's a new Eyeshadow 18 Colours palette coming at the beginning of the year — something unexpected, but personal. I'm very excited about it.

[Our plan] is to keep exploring — to keep creating tools for expression with intention and depth. We want to expand, but in meaningful ways — new textures, new categories, always rooted in emotion. Beauty, for me, is never static. It evolves as we do. 

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