prepping the skin

It is important to prep the skin before makeup application, in Sue's  practical session we prep the skin my cleansing, toning and moisturising with the products provided in the studio.

Whilst you prep the skin you can also check the skin for any contraindications prior to the makeup.

1 - cleanse
2 - tone
3 -moisturise
4 -prime

History of the Geisha and its revelance to Elizabethan era.

Similar to the women from the Elizabethan era, Japanese Geisha's share familiar makeup styles. The ideal beauty in both of these cultures is that they both desire a pale complexion and rouge tint to the lips. I found that the history of Japanese Geisha's and their make-up style was interesting to use as a contemporary source alongside the Elizabethan era.
The white makeup style worn by Geisha's is from China and then  it became popular in Japan and adopted by courtesans. Like Elizabethan women, Geisha's created their cosmetics by mixing water and rice powder together by hand to create a pale foundation colour, they would also block out their eyebrows and instead of plucking and altering the shape of the brow like the Elizabethans, they drew a new brow shape up to the top of their forehead in the colour black. To finish the look, the lips were painted a rouge red shade.

Cosmetic Ingredients.

Rice powder and water - foundation
Charcoal - Eyebrows
Benibana,safflower, water and crystalized sugar - lips

Bibliography

http://www.japancoolture.com/en/the_geishas_make-up_origins_and_techniques_in_the_geisha_make-up_art
https://kojikis.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/geisha.png?w=230&h=316

Extreme Beauty The Body Transformed. The Metropolitan Museum of Art By Harold Koda.

Extreme Beauty ,The Body Transformed. The Metropolitan Museum of Art By Harold Koda.Yale University Press, New Haven and London. Copyright , The Metropolitan Museum,New York 2001.

I recently took out the book 'Extreme Beauty, The Body Transformed By Harold Koda', from the library. I decided to read this book in response to some of the recent blogs I have written, these blogs discuss high fashion clothing collections that have inspired me and held and an Elizabethan theme. My decision to look at aspects of fashion design alongside Makeup and Hair design has been due to the influence of fashion designers always looking at a whole image. What I mean by this is, that I feel that when fashion designers organise their clothing for a show they consider everything, the makeup, hair, accessories, race of models, facial features of models, etc. As I have been creating my contemporary Elizabethan character, I have been considering the same things, as I feel that visualising the clothing and personality of my Elizabethan character, has made me think more creatively and out of the box. The practitioner Alexander McQueen is a perfect example of this as his outstanding fashion shows, always feature abstract and unique make-up and hair designs making the models appear as if they are fantasy characters from another universe. The image below is a good example of some of the incredible work Alexander McQueen created, and it can be used to argue that the hair and makeup design is powerful and transforms clothing into a story.

Alexander McQueen Genius of a Generation.
A&C Black London
Getty Images.
Spring/Summer 2003

''Extreme Beauty addresses the ideals of beauty that have persisted or shifted through the ages in various cultures. The mechanisms of costume have transformed the zones of the body, dictating shaping and proportion by artificially changing the body's silhouette and sometimes physically altering its natural structure. Kodak draws on the historical and cultural diversity of fashion to tell the fascinating complex story of the continual varied shifts of style and recurrences of the past that have occurred right up to the present. His project is especially pertinent in this age, when mass communication enables individuals around the globe to reach through time and across the cultures by jet or computer. He examines historical fashions, traditional consuming from Africa and Asia, and fashions by some of the most creative and often controversial designers of today- John Galliano for Christian Dior, Alexander McQueen for Givenchy, Rei Kawakubo for Comme des Garcons, Issey Miyake and Thierry Mugler, among others." - Extreme Beauty ,The Body Transformed. The Metropolitan Museum of Art By Harold Koda.Yale University Press, New Haven and London. Copyright , The Metropolitan Museum,New York 2001.

This book allows me to take Elizabethan beauty ideals and compare them to other cultures and even modern day examples, giving me a different aspect of beauty and how we are still influenced by historical traditions to this day. I have already discussed some cultures in my blogs were I was inspired by, African Tribal skin scaring and the beauty ideal of skin whitening and a fair complexion in Japan. In this book it takes some examples of Renaissance and Elizabethan portraiture, discussing its traditional beauty in the image and then comparing it to other cultures and examples. 


Extreme Beauty ,The Body Transformed. The Metropolitan Museum of Art By Harold Koda.Yale University Press, New Haven and London. Copyright , The Metropolitan Museum,New York 2001, Page 20-21. 

" The origin of the ruff is attributable to the wearing of the white linen undergarments and shirts to protect the richer, more fragile outer fabrics of dress from both the perspiring body and the friction of the skin against the neckline and wrists. As witnessed even in the early depictions of this practice, the visible boundaries of undershirts and chemises were quickly ornamented by laces and embroideries. These embellishments were not only decorative but also functioned as reinforcing elements of the undergarment.

Amazingly, what began as the outlining of the neckline with ornamental edgings or small collars quickly evolved into a framing of the face. The ruff's discrete beginnings do not anticipate its accelerated inflation to shoulder-wide dimension. This broadening obliterated any exposure of the neck and consequently visually detached the heady from the body. Additionally, the canting of the neckpiece created an optical illusion; the extended plane of white suggested a larger distance between the head and the torso. In effect, the ruff floated the head above the body at an ambiguous point that appeared farther than the physical reality. The expense and ostentation of the ruff made it a compelling object of moral censure. As illustrated in the engraving on the overleaf, the stiffly starched collars typical of seventeenth- century black- suited burghers today evoke the probity and sobriety of bourgeois traditionalism. But at this height of florid fashionableness, the ruff conveyed the impression of an impulse to luxury and a submission to ludicrous vanity."

Cornelis de Vos, Portrait of a Woman
Oil on wood, 17th Century.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art,
European Paintings,
Marquand Collection, Gift of Henry G.
Marquand, 1889 (89.15.37).
Photograph: Peter Zeray, The Photograph Studio,
The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Yoshiki Hishinuma, Evening Ensemble,
'Peche Originel" Collection, Fall-winter 2001.
Photograph:Firstview.com

" In Cornelis de Vos's portrait illustrated above left, the ruff's wide border of white obscures the neck and disrupts the relationship of head to body. There is a sense of disengagement of the head from the trunk. This spatial ambiguity introduces an optical attenuation. The linen cuffs in the portrait achieve a similar illusion; it is as if the sitters arms were too long for her sleeve. Yoshiki Hishinuma's ensemble shown above right extends the effect of the ruff onto the shoulders. Two rows of identically constructed bands adumbrate the puffed neckpiece. Although they are discontinuous, being open at center front, the two puffed rows at either shoulder create a visual segue to neckpiece and head. While Hishinuma's actual ruff is substantially smaller than the one depicted by de Vos, It functions with the ancillary bands to give the impression of a triple- tiered ruff that extends past the shoulders like the short mantles in Vogue in the 1890s." 

The above description taken from Harold Koda's book, discusses not only a fashion trend shared between two cultures and centuries but also perfectly describes the finish and illusion created in my contemporary make-up design. After reading this page from Harold Koda's book I feel that my contemporary design can be compared to the form and illusion of the 'ruff' as described above. The ruff has been worn in History as an accessory and also a symbol of wealth and vanity as described above, although I had known many prestigious people in society were known to wear the ruff, I wasn't aware that it was worn to accentuate or change the form of the body. I feel that similarly to the ruff my final design creates a lot of illusion, this was confirmed when my lecturer and partner of my design commented on me wearing the design, saying it looked as if I was 'floating' and they could not recognise my expression as the contrasting colors created an illusion, as if my facial features had disappeared. Below is an image of my final makeup look which best describes the optical illusion I feel it creates, similar to the effect of the Ruff in Renaissance portraiture.

The Revengeful Bride - Elizabeth Brydges.

My final Make-up Assessment - My partners design.

I recently just completed my timed assessment on creating my partners final design. In response to the assessment I feel fairly pleased with the outcome of the makeup design I attempted to create in order to communicate my partners character. Outside of practical sessions, me and my partner made sure to practice in the studios and communicate with each other well in order for her to be happy with the techniques I was using to create her look and also so that I would feel confident knowing I was doing the right thing. When I practiced my partners design the first few times, I feel that I created that looks that she had designed on the face charts provided, but my partner would tend to tweak or edit her face chart afterwards. I didn't mind this as i genuinely enjoyed her makeup design and thought it would look amazing on her, because of the chosen colours she wanted me to use which would pop alongside her hair colour. 

Anytime I practiced her look in and out to studio sessions, I always felt quite confident and pleased with the techniques I was using as my partner communicated that the outcome was good and what she wanted. The only improvements I think I had to make in practicing before the timed assessment was, my blending technique as she commented that she wanted it buffed and blended out more, instead of in block colours. In response to this I began practicing the method Kat had shown me in a studio session,where she took a large blush brush and applied a minimal amount of product and then gradually applying more, then buffing the product into the skin into circular motions so that It would have a soft ombre finish on the skin.

Although I began practicing my blending method, my partner edited her face chart again before our timed assessment and decided she wanted a brush stroke finish on the sides of the face instead of a soft blend on different complimentary colours. After all the changes to the face chart, I still felt confident during the timed assessment and began to start off the look as practiced, starting with the base and then they eye are finishing with the cheeks and lips. At the beginning of the assessment, I felt quite nervous and was very focused on completing the look in time. After a while I began to feel less tense and instead enjoyed applying the makeup as I felt I was applying the makeup in a good pace whilst creating my partners design well.

Something that let me down towards then end of the assessment was the application of the provided false eyelashes and also the lip design. I had previously practiced applying the false lashes to my partner in a practice studio session, my partner and I had already discussed that we wasn't sure if they were going to glue and stay on the eyes as we wanted because the band of the lashes were quite thick. Although, we went ahead and applied them in the practical and they were perfectly fine just needed some extra glue in places where it was lifting. The eyelashes reacted the same during the timed assessment, and i only felt they were a little bit time consuming was because I had applied both lashes successfully but they kept lifting at the outer corners of the eyes, meaning I had to hold them onto the lash until dry enough to stay.

The lip design my partner wanted was really beautiful and I felt that I would be fine at creating the design confidently. I left the lips until last to finish my partners look, although now Im not sure If that was the smartest thing to do as that is something I am not best at doing compared to eye and base application. My partners lip design consisted of gold and red combining together into ombre finish, I began to create the lip design like practiced and created the lips well and I was very happy with them. But as i decided to clean up around the lips to define them and neaten them up I smudged them by accident, which then began to bleed into the skin base I created, turning it pink. I began to panic at this point because Sue began to count down to the last 5 minutes of the assessment, but this was frustrating because I had so much time left prior to me completely ruining the perfect lips I had made. 

Eventually, I completed my partners look before the end of the timed assessment and was still pleased with the outcome although the lips had really upset me, Sue mentioned to me that I will learn and improve from these mistakes. Sue also gave me good feedback but said I could improve on making the brush strokes alongside either of the face more even. I also spoke to my partner, apologising about the lips and asking her wether she was happy with the look which she said she was. I think If I was to redo my partners look I would start with the lips after I apply the eye makeup as it is most time consuming and difficult for me and gives me time to fix any mistakes. Also I would concentrate more on the width and length of strokes I was creating making sure they appeared more symmetrical to each other. 

Skin Type - Combination

Contraindications- None 

Products used - 

Collection gold liquid eyeliner

Illamasqua white base

Illamasqua translucent setting powder

Cryogen Vbrights eyeshadow palette

Illamasqua Liquid metals palette 

Orange Fake eyelashes 

Collection Red lipstick 

Brushes used -

Foundation brush

Kabuki brush

Blusher brush

small eyeshadow brush

Blending eyeshadow brush

angled eye brush

Final Makeup Assessment - My partner creating my design.

Partner - Rebbeca Southerden.

This week it was my partners turn to create my final contemporary hair and make-up designs. On Monday my partner created my make-up design which I overall felt went quite well. I feel that we spent enough time practicing my design in and out of practical sessions, and my design developed as we practiced. When we first practiced my design, I was happy with the outcome my partner had created but it became obvious that creating the clean, precise and straight lines in my monochrome makeup look was difficult. Because of the black and white colours in my look, the line that separated these two colors from my lip, had to be very clean and precise which was difficult to create free hand so any mistake made would show up. 

To my partners best efforts, she could not create the perfect line I wanted free hand, so we both agreed that a stencil of the shape I wanted would be much more practical and save a lot of time. In response to this I created a stencil for my partner and explained how to use it, she practiced this before the assessment in our practical session and it was very successful. 

I feel that my partner listened to my ideas well and created the base and shape of my design well, I have always had confidence that my partner could create my design the way I wanted. Although, when we first practiced she followed my design correctly creating my desired base and eyes, but she did not create the lip shape exactly how I wanted. In response to this I explained to her again the shape I wanted and showed her so that she understood better what I meant. Because of situations like that I felt that our communication was very good because we always made sure that we understood each other properly. 

In regards of time, my partner created my look fairly quickly as well as making sure the design was perfected and even. I feel that she made sure she spent the right amount of time on the lip area I designed, to make sure it was symmetrical and had a clean and precise finish. The only technique of hers I would change in regards to the look, is that she edited the shape of my natural lip slightly towards the end of the assessment as she felt it wasn't symmetrical enough. Although, I appreciate that she wanted it to look perfect, I felt that It was finished and looked good and due to her changing the lip shape slightly she had to change one side of the face to equal out the other. Although, this did not change or ruin the finished look, I felt that it was unnecessary as she had done well and it ended up taking a little bit of time away.

Also, I really liked the finish of the eye area my partner had created but, the small detailing of the color silver I wanted was a little too big. During practice sessions I had explained that I wanted a small precise line of silver underneath the eyes, so that It was subtle and almost invisible against the white base. In response to this I feel that I still liked the finish of the look but It was something that stood out a lot to me because my design was simple in terms of the amount of colors I was using. If this look was recreated I would suggest maybe using a smaller brush to create a finer line so that it wasn't as thick. 

Overall I was very pleased with the final outcome of my look. I felt my partner had taken the correct amount of time to create my look in the final assessment and we also spent a practical amount of time outside of sessions to practice it. She used the techniques that I wanted and created the finish of different parts of my look the way I had explained e.g the black lips and white base. In regards to improving on my look I feel that corrections I would have made are very minimal and my final look symbolised and appeared how I wanted, this was confirmed by my peers who commented on my final look, describing it as creepy and scary. 

Products Used-

Illamasqua Satin primer

White Supra color 

Illamasqua Skin base

Illamasqua translucent powder

Black Supra color

Illamasqua Black eyeshadow

Illamasqua Liquid Metals palette - Silver

Valeriya Kutsan x Alexander Khokhlov x My final contemporary design.

Valeriya Kutsan is an amazing make-up artist from Russia who I have previously used in reference to my work on my previous art and design course. Whilst searching for some images of monochrome makeup that created illusion, I automatically thought of her work. I initially started to research this style of makeup because, as I started to self reflect and look back on my blogs I realised I hadn't spoken a lot about any sources, artists and images that reflect and describe the final monochrome makeup design I had made. So I decided to look on the photographer, Alexander Khokhlov's website where he collaborates with Valeriya Kutsan in a visual series called 'Weird Beauty and 2D or not 2D'. This series has some images I really admire and I feel are perfect to use as contemporary examples of the final make-up design I made.

Newton's Cradle
Alexander Khokhlov x Valeriya Kutsan.
Image sourced from Official Alexander Khokhlov Website.
http://www.alexanderkhokhlov.com/categories/shapes-and-illusions

The above image is called 'Newton's Cradle' created by Valeriya Kutsan and photographed by Alexander Khokhlov, this beautiful image is featured in the Shapes and Illusions section on the official website. I have chosen to feature this image in my blog and talk about it because, It is the main image I found that best presents a contemporary example of my final contemporary Elizabethan makeup design. I am unsure of the inspiration of the series of these makeup images but I admire them a lot. In this image the model appears to have makeup applied on her in a way that makes her blend in and form into her environment and the hanging objects beside her. Similar to my final design the makeup style is monochrome and the application on the two contrasting colors are very precise, exact and neat. Black face paint covers the models chest up to the neck and then neatly applied around the face and possibly the top of the head in a precise circle shape. I like that the white makeup applied on the model looks similar to the traditional Elizabethan makeup worn in the era and that the hair is also white not only the eyes and face, this makes the model look completely consumed in the color perfectly matching the objects beside her. Although in my contemporary design the black precise line of colour begins at the top of the lip and then covering the neck, the placing of the colour is very similar to mine, following facial features to decide how to create the final circular shape. After observing her precise shaping I have become intrigued as to how Valeriya created such a perfect circle shape, I created a stencil for my partner to use in our timed assessment so that it was much easier and even. In response to this I am going to try and contact the makeup artist in regards to this image and see if she can share her techniques with me.

Quotes.
Alexander Khokhlov x Valeriya Kutsan.
Image sourced from Official Alexander Khokhlov Website.
http://www.alexanderkhokhlov.com

This is another image featured on the official website of Alexander Khokhlov, in the shapes and illusions section. This image stood out to me a lot because of the vibrant, bright red colour that takes over the whole background of the image and then the bright pop, of white quote symbols. Like the image 'Newton's cradle' I think the makeup is created with body paint covering the whole of the models' chest upwards and then once again precisely filled in with a quote symbol over the face. I really appreciate the intricate and precise lines used to form the bottom parts of the quotes, as the rest of the quotes appear to be formed with a circular arrangement of flowers. Also I noticed that the quote on the second model appears to be carefully applied on the side of her face pointing perfectly in the exact direction of her jawline, framing the face. This makeup is very interesting and creates a lot of illusion, I feel that If I was to view it from a distance I wouldn't see the models at all. Because of this I felt that it was a really nice example to look at in regards of 'hidden symbolism' and meaning that we have been looking at in Elizabethan portraiture.

These are two images of my final contemporary make-up design that my partner created on me. In response to the assessment I felt very happy with the final outcome and think it communicates well what I wanted to as quite a few peers commented on my design saying it appeared creepy and scary.





Bibliography and References-
https://drscdn.500px.org/photo/105986803/w%3D280_h%3D280/57707372764ebddbc13805c5ead50b61?v=12
http://www.alexanderkhokhlov.com
http://www.alexanderkhokhlov.com/categories/shapes-and-illusions

Elizabeth Brydes; The Revengeful Bride.

My new Elizabethan is the 'alter ego' of Queen Elizabeth's Maid of Honour and lady in waiting; Elizabeth Brydges. I chose to base my Hair and Make-up design on Elizabeth Brydges as her dull and depressing life stood out to me when reading about her life, in comparison to Queen Elizabeth's other Ladies in waiting whom all experienced scandalous affairs and royal tragedies. Because of this I decided that I would create a morbid and revengeful alter ego for Elizabeth Brydges, who would be reincarnated as creepy, evil, powerful and wealthy and all the things Elizabeth wanted to be but was never able to be. When creating some face charts to communicate my design and character, I first began making designs that included colours such as gold, bronze and green so that I could use symbolism to communicate my contemporary character, similarly to how symbolism was used in traditional Elizabethan portraiture e.g green shades could communicate the emotion envy and greed. After creating a few different face chart designs I felt that colour wasn't working for me and that I wanted to create a character that appeared more creepy with the use of minimal colour, because of this I began creating monochrome face charts consisting of only black and white.

I created some face charts and decided on a final look for my partner to recreate in our timed assessment. When we practiced outside of practical sessions I was happy with the outcome but I decided to change the subtle gold detailing under my eyes to a silver colour instead. I chose to change the gold to silver instead because I felt that the silver colour was more subtle and expensive looking, also you could only see the silver when reflected in the light which I thought was a nice touch. The silver colour for me symbolised wealth and aristocracy similar to what gold and silver colours symbolised in the Elizabethan era. Incorporating this colour also allowed me to bring my abstract makeup design and Elizabethan theme together more.


The information below is sourced from the site; http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/color-gold.htm
The information below best describes my reasoning for experimenting with the colour gold in
my makeup design and the Elizabethan symbolism it holds.

The Meaning of the color GoldThe color and material used in Elizabethan Clothing was extremely important. People who could wear the color Gold was dictated by English Law. These were called the Sumptuary Laws. The colors of Elizabethan clothes, including the color Gold, provided information about the status of the man or woman wearing them. This was not just dictated by the wealth of the person, it also reflected their social standing. The meaning of colors during the Elizabethan era represented many aspects of their life - the social, religious, biblical and Christian symbolism was reflected in the color Gold.'

The information below is sourced from the site;

http://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/color-silver.html

The information below best describes my reasoning for experimenting with the colour silver in my makeup design and the symbolism it holds.

The Color Silver Represents:

Illumination: silver opens the mind and lights the way forward.

Reflection: it reflects back the energy sent out, whether that energy is positive or negative.

Prestige and Wealth: silver is seen as glamorous and sophisticated, and relates to the professional and corporate market.

Feminine Power: it is related to the femininity of the moon's energy, sensitive, emotional and fluid.

 As I reflect on my primary research and contemporary and historical references I feel that the influence of a monochrome theme has been continuous and as I began looking more at Elizabethan portraiture and the work of the photographer; Hendrick Kerstens I recognised the influence it had on my design. The similarity of the work of Hendrick Kerssens and also Elizabethan portraiture was that they both had very contrasted, dark backgrounds painted or placed behind the sitter. After discussing this with my partner Beccy I discovered that this style of photography is called 'Flemish Photography'. The art of Flemish painting began in the early 15th century following onto the 17th century. Flemish painting appears to hold the same style of the sitter or object painted in oil paints with bright or pigmented colours, making them almost look like a photograph. Flemish painting derived from the Netherlands and became extremely popular in Ancient Rome and Belgium. Some Flemish paintings are very intricate and surreal and others are very abstract and rich in colour. After researching more about this art form, I found that many contemporary artists such as Hendrick Kerstens have used this art form to either create or influence their own work. 

The Ermine Portrait by Nicholas Hilliard c1585.
Image sourced from Google.
http://www.gogmsite.net/_Media/1585_elizabeth_ermine_portr.jpg

The above portrait best describes the monochrome colour scheme and contrasting colours that I felt were influential on my make-up designs. Queen Elizabeth appears to be wearing a black gown with gold, red and green detailing. Although the dress is covered in beautiful detailing and embroidery it seems to give the illusion that her body is disappearing into the dark background painted behind her. Whenever Elizabethan portraiture is like this and the sitter is dressed completely in black, blending into their background I feel the portrait becomes very creepy and cold, almost like the sitter is a ghost. Realising this, I feel that I have included the monochrome illusion into my look without even realising it.

The collaboration of Alexander Khokhlov and Valeriya Kutsan in the series 'Weird Beauty and 2D or not 2D, have inspired me a lot when looking at contemporary examples of my final makeup design. I have previously researched and used the collaboration of these two artists before in my work, and when I thought of my final design I remembered that the makeup artist Valeriya Kutsan had made some very similar illusion makeup looks. 
This is an image that best describes how I find these two artists perfect, when comparing my final design to a modern example.

Newton's Cradle
Alexander Khokhlov x Valeriya Kutsan.
Image sourced from Official Alexander Khokhlov Website.
http://www.alexanderkhokhlov.com/categories/shapes-and-illusions

The above image is called 'Newton's Cradle' created by Valeriya Kutsan and photographed by Alexander Khokhlov, this beautiful image is featured in the Shapes and Illusions section on the official website. I have chosen to feature this image in my blog and talk about it because, It is the main image I found that best presents a contemporary example of my final contemporary Elizabethan makeup design. I am unsure of the inspiration of the series of these makeup images but I admire them a lot. In this image the model appears to have makeup applied on her in a way that makes her blend in and form into her environment and the hanging objects beside her. Similar to my final design the makeup style is monochrome and the application on the two contrasting colors are very precise, exact and neat. Black face paint covers the models chest up to the neck and then neatly applied around the face and possibly the top of the head in a precise circle shape. I like that the white makeup applied on the model looks similar to the traditional Elizabethan makeup worn in the era and that the hair is also white not only the eyes and face, this makes the model look completely consumed in the color perfectly matching the objects beside her. Although in my contemporary design the black precise line of colour begins at the top of the lip and then covering the neck, the placing of the colour is very similar to mine, following facial features to decide how to create the final circular shape. After observing her precise shaping I have become intrigued as to how Valeriya created such a perfect circle shape, I created a stencil for my partner to use in our timed assessment so that it was much easier and even. 

Bibliography and References-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flemish_painting
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_and_Flemish_Renaissance_painting
http://www.britannica.com/art/Flemish-art
http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/history-of-art/flemish-painting.htm
http://www.gogmsite.net/_Media/1585_elizabeth_ermine_portr.jpg