Photo courtesy of Tang Wei

London, Oct. 18 (CNA) Taiwanese hairdresser Tang Wei (唐威) won the Avant-garde category of the 2018 Visionary Award at the Alternative Hair Show (AHS) in London on Oct. 14. He is the first Taiwanese to receive the award.

Tang had less than a month to prepare for the competition, while moving house and working for Flux Réel Hair Boutique in Taiwan, so he was under a lot of pressure. "I could write a book based on my experience this month," he said after winning the award.

He also barely had enough time to finish his work during the competition. "I didn't think about winning the award just trying not to lose face. I was a bit shocked when I won. It was unexpected," Tang added.

To echo the theme of this year's event "Mystique," Tang's hairstyle design was based on the secret of life, the delicate change of color representing the growth of cells.

AHS has become a renowned international hairdressing competition. It includes three categories; Cut and Colour, Mens, and Avant-garde. This year, Ryu Kyougoku from Japan won the Cut and Colour category and Alessandro Barca from the UK took first place in the Mens category.

AHS was founded by British hairdresser Tony Rizzo to commemorate his son who died of leukemia at the age of 2. The money made from the sale of show tickets is donated to Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research, the only charity in the UK dedicated to improving the lives of those with leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma.

Last year, AHS raised £280,000 (about US$360,000) for the organization.

(by Tai Ya-chen and CNA intern Chi Jo-yao)Enditem/AW