Liuligongfang was founded in 1987 by actress Loretta Yang and director Chang Yi. Their name refers to "liuli", a form of archaic Chinese glasswork; the founders chose to use the word "liuli", rather than the common name for glass, "boli" (玻璃) to honor their cultural origin. The founders aimed to revive the art of antique Chinese art glass, the production of which had dwindled following the First and Second Opium Wars in the 19th century. Yang mortgaged her house and those of all her family members in order to gain start-up capital. After much trial and error, costing $1 million and taking more than three years, she and Chang were able to master the French "pate-de-verre" or lost-wax casting method. At the time of their founding, they operated a two-person workshop in Tamsui, Taipei County (now New Taipei City). Yang and Chang originally had a fairly strict division of labour, with Yang handling the artistic aspects of their work, while Chang managed finances and other business responsibilities; with Chang's 1997 heart attack, Yang has taken over more of Chang's responsibilities as well, including contact with the media.