Lady Gaga's Makeup Artist Shares 'Aftermath' of Oscars Makeup Removal from Barefaced Performance

How did Lady Gaga remove her bold 2023 Oscars glam in hours? Her makeup artist Sarah Tanno reveals an inside look

Lady Gaga's makeup transformation from full-glam to makeup-free at the 2023 Oscars left fans in awe. Now, her makeup artist, Sarah Tanno, is sharing some insight on what went down.

On Sunday night, the Academy Award-winning singer (who originally was not slated to attend the awards show) walked the red carpet dressed in a hot-off-the-runway, butt-baring Versace gown.

Tanno complimented the daring ensemble with an equally edgy and dramatic beauty moment, which was inspired by Robert Palmer's "Addicted to Love" music video.

The music icon, 36, donned smudged and heavily-lined smokey eyes (penned by Tanno as a "Smokey Palmer Girl" look) as well as pigmented hot pink blush and an eye-catching red lip. The latter two were achieved with the Color Fuse Powder Blush and the Atomic Shake Long Lasting Liquid Lipstick, both by Gaga's makeup brand Haus of Labs, which is known for its high-impact, high-color products.

95th Annual Academy Awards - Arrivals
Arturo Holmes/Getty

However, during the live broadcast, the Star is Born actress made an unexpectedly pared-down outfit change and went barefaced for a stripped-back performance of her nominated single "Hold My Hand."

Lady Gaga's Makeup Artist Shares 'Aftermath' of Oscars Makeup Removal from Her Barefaced Performance
Kevin Mazur/Getty, Rich Polk/Variety via Getty

As striking as her vocals were, it was Gaga's completely makeup-free appearance that stole the show. And it left fans with one question lingering over their heads: What superhero product did Gaga and her team use to seamlessly remove her full glam within only a couple of hours?

"I need the name of whatever makeup remover Lady Gaga uses," one fan tweeted while another noted that they were "sold" on whatever product was used.

Lady Gaga performs onstage during the 95th Annual Academy Awards at Dolby Theatre on March 12, 2023 in Hollywood, California.
Lady Gaga. Kevin Winter/Getty

One day later Tanno offered a glimpse at what went behind the 360 transformation — and apparently, it wasn't easy.

A photo shared to her Instagram Story shows a collection of dirty makeup wipes, cotton swabs and circular pads that were used to remove Gaga's full beat.

"The Aftermath…" she wrote alongside a credit to InStyle.

Lady Gaga's Makeup Artist Shares 'Aftermath' of Oscars Makeup Removal from Her Barefaced Performance
Sarah Tanno/instagram

While Tanno didn't exactly reveal which holy grail product she put to the test, a 2019 interview with Harper's Bazaar provides an inkling of what it could be.

"I like to kick it old school, I like the Lancôme Bi-Facil," she told the outlet on her go-to product for removing makeup.

Another must? Argan oil, which the pro revealed she learned from Gaga herself. "Also, argan oil—Gaga taught me that. If you have heavy eye makeup or waterproof products, just straight up argan oil is really great to just remove everything and melt it off. I learn so much from her!"

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Gaga's bare-faced appearance was intentional. In conversation with The Hollywood Reporter, Academy Awards executive producers explained that Gaga wanted her production to be "raw."

"She was really appropriate about the fact that this is a meaningful song to her and she wanted to really strip it down and do it not as an 'Oscar performance,' but as her," explained showrunner Glenn Weiss. "And that's exactly what we tried to capture."

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