The two different breeds of birds I've decided to base the shape of my model off of are the grackle and the jay bird. For the grackle, I've looked at both the male and the female variations in plumage, as I think that the patterns and colours between these two examples vary beautifully. I also looked at both the American blue jay as well as the British jay, as they have such striking appearances and colours to them. I love the stained-glass looking patterns of the jay, the velveteen sheen of the grackle and the mix of autumnal colours in the female grackle; these are all colour palettes I'd love to experiment with.
I also chose breeds of birds that have distinguishing features, such as the pointed crest on the blue jays head, and the way the tail fans out on the grackle.
I attempted to collect a range of photo that would display a range of angles and poses, in order to obtain the best selection of references.
An artist that continues to inspire me in my work, and has an especially clear presence within this project is Mister Finch. I've been studying his bird pieces especially in order to begin figuring out what kind of form and pattern my own birds could be constructed to.
The general structures seem relatively easy, with a simple seam running down the chest of the bird and techniques of embroidery and use of wire to give texture and accentuate limbs. What makes Mr Finch's work stand out so much to me is how real these creatures seem; especially the ones that are posed as if they were dead. The poses and stiffness of sculptures add to the realism here, they almost look like taxidermy.
One thing I won't have to worry about in my own work are the faces, as these will be covered with either cast or sewn masks.
My birds will hopefully also have a wire armature running through the legs and wings, and so instead of being immobile sculptures they could hold the potential to move and be posed.
Classic art examples shown to me by a tutor when we were discussing architecture of the set and city that my narrative is based within. The concept art I previously drew out last term reminded them of this artist, so I put together a few compilations of his work after doing some research on the artist.
"A strange creature races against time to make the most important and beautiful creation of his life."
'The Maker' is the multi-award winning brainchild of Christopher Kezelos, Paul Halley and Amanda Louise Spayd. After realising that friend and composer, Paul Halley was struggling to reach audiences online, Kezelos decided to team up with Amanda Spayd to bring attention to the music he was creating. Between them, they formed the world of The Maker; a short story that takes place within one enclosed, yet cosy looking room. The film begins with a rabbit-like creature's eyes snapping open. The expression looks shocked or perhaps even horrified, and the environment seems unknown to them. As the workshop is introduced to the rabbit, the audience too become acquainted with the surroundings that appear homely and colourful. However, as the story continues, we realise that the character has a purpose, and is being directed by the props and signs throughout the room.
He begins constructing, sewing, baking clay, and the viewers begin to realise he's making a second rabbit. The initial presumptions could be that he's creating a companion for himself, as the book he seems to be reading instructs how to create a creature similar to him, and how to bring it to life through the medium of music. This itself could be a nod towards the animators and composers themselves, perhaps saying how music brings their image to life?
We see the processes he goes through to create his smaller companion, but the mood goes from cute and artsy to gradually more stressed. This vibe is definitely assisted by the upbeat tempo of the music evident from the very start; as much as the setting is beautiful and the main character feels home made, and creepy but equally adorable, the use of unnerving music and symbolism of a timer that is constantly running out creates a vibe of uncertainty and nervousness.
The twist in the tale happens when the timer runs out just as this father figure is giving his own creation the manual on how he made her; As the last grains of sand fall through the hourglass, he disappears in a flurry of dust that resets the messy room as it scatters. The room is tidied and exactly back to the way it was when the original character first opened his eyes. The daughters expression mirrors that of her own maker in the first seconds of the film, and the audience realise as the hourglass flips and the urgent violin music starts up again, that the entire story is an ongoing cycle of makers and their creations.
Overall, 'The Maker' is definitely an animation that made me sit back and think about it once it was finished. Watching it a second time also helped me to realise a lot of the messages that were being conveyed, and themes made a lot more sense and clicked into place the second time watching it through. The aesthetic is gorgeous in both the character and the set, and I love the way the character moves in the scenery. It's definitely a complete world that fits together beautifully, and I aim to use this example as a signpost to come back to, to inspire my own work.
From writing up my summary of the Orestia, I've realised that the main area of interest for me are the characters of the Furies. They so far inspired ideas of potential character designs, piece of concept art, and possible areas of study that the project could manifest in. The first thoughts I had when reading about these spirits, were creepy bird like creatures of death. In the text it describes them as wearing all black, and that the 'blood must continually flow', referring them punishing the one who has already murdered, e.g. blood must continue to be spilt.
Piecing together the creepy bird creature image and possible symbols of death I could use to convey the character of the Furies to a viewer, I was reminded of the Plague doctors with their long beaked masks, empty eyes, outfits made entirely in black and the association they have with a period of history where death was prominent. This idea could also be inspired by the work I've simultaneously been doing on 'The Birds.'
The current ideas I have for the Furies are as follows: - The continuous blood and black garments promote a red and black colour scheme.
- The idea that they are goddesses/ gods/ monsters of vengeance.
- The idea that they could be personified curses.
- Design them with the aspects of being inhuman; no gender, a monster, try to make a human the least human like I possible can?
- In that trail of thought, a robot sentinel with continuously flowing red wires? Or should this character be something more organic?
- Tribal? In the images above I've included a Tibetan death mask (lower right corner) and a carnival costume of a witch shaman lion. This tribal style really appeals to be and conveys the magic and anonymity of the Furies that I'd like to create if I choose to follow the route of this play.
With the students coming to visit us at Farnham I also had the opportunity to sit down with the pupil who'll be performing as Orpheus and chat with him about the potential costume. As lead designer for the male characters, (Hades and Orpheus) I still hadn't been given any information on what the Performing Arts students wanted for the main characters so this was a prime opportunity to straighten this out. In general, I got the idea they wanted a man kitted out in generic 50's male fashion. However, I was also able to discuss characterisation for the figure of Orpheus:
He's not wealthy at all, and working at 'The Underworld' club as a struggling musician and club presenter with his love, Eurydice. Down beat, desperate, love stricken, afraid and frustrated, Orpheus is also horribly in debt to Hades; a debt he's struggling to pay off. Having this conversation gave me a lot more to go on, and now I have more of Orpheus' characterisation understood. Hades on the other hand is the puppet master, the over lord, a dominant and twisted man who manipulates anyone for his own gain.
Through research I learnt that during the 50's the long trench coat and trilby styled hat was very common within the working 'businessman' class. Even though this was every-day wear, it also has a very formal appearance to it that I don't think would suit the down-trodden vibe of Orpheus. This style seems too mature and official. Instead I began concentrating on the style of younger men, or envisaging the fashions without the coat or hat. During this era, wearing a hat was 'the done thing' in polite society and all men would usually don the before mentioned trilby style before leaving the family home. However, if Orpheus is very poor then I can't visualise him in thick new coat and smart hat. Why wear clothes that hold a social status symbol when he's hit rock bottom? Because of this, I think a simple shirt, tie and waistcoat would be more accurate for the character, possibly distressed or aged up too? This would also be more cost effective and suit the minimal/ symbolic uses of the other costume.
I was also potentially considering braces, but don't want the fashion to come through too American in style, as the production is set in 1950's England. However, upon research, it turns out that braces would be worn very commonly in late 1940's/ early 50's England by gentlemen, e.g. A tailor would assume that trousers would always be worn with braces, as "any gentleman would insist upon". Because of this, I think that braces would suit the character as they were a commonly worn undergarment and no where near as fancy as a hat and coat, but I do think that aging them up or making them look patched up and old would be appropriate.
Later on I discovered this photo on Pinterest, which I think sums up the visualisation I have of Orpheus in my head at the moment! Slicked back hair, distressed and aged clothing, dirtied face and skin (makeup), fake cigarette prop. The braces should be a little worse for wear, as should the trousers and shirt but that can be achieved with simple distressing methods.
Research in consideration of rethinking the mermaid aesthetic.
As concern over the orange, grey and white colour scheme of the catfish was expressed due to the colours being too dull and potentially not being able to stand out from the realistic background, rethinking this character design has become necessary. The narrative author has described the mermaid characterisation to me as being a jealous, punky and sassy, and wanting to avoid falling into a conventional beauty and fashion category, I decided to look into Drag Queen makeup. I also looked at mermaid inspired makeup, and 'seapunk' inspired designs.
Going on to design and practice these makeup looks will be my next step in development. However, at this point I'd like to stop researching and designing on paper and begin rehearsing and finalising the makeup in time for the photo shoot on Tuesday.
The makeup for the clown will be a very important aspect of its characterisation. Wanting to steer away from a classic 'entertainer at a kids party' look, I looked to Cirque Du Soleil for my inspiration of this makeup. Bearing in mind this will need to be done on a model on the morning of the final Photoshoot, I'd like to keep it fairly uncomplicated as being a part of the makeup team means this won't be the only makeup I'm applying.
Cirque Du Soleil use a lot of gradient and ombre effects in the style of clown makeup I've specifically been inspired by. Using quite elegant shapes that assist in contouring the face, the make up though beautiful is still definitely that of a clowns which is the aesthetic I'd like to produce.
Blue, white, red and black are dominant colours in the palette of tones used for the looks featured. The shapes and shading created within the makeup also frame the faces creating a variety of potential effects, e.g bringing out cheek bones, making the eyebrows look longer and thinner, or enhancing laugh lines and wrinkles for comedic effect.
Along with the inspirational images above I've included some initial makeup looks to experiment with or develop. One or two I copied directly in order to get a feel for the kind of makeup/ shapes.
Potential ideas:
- Both versions of Hades could have the same makeup to carry the character across scenes?
- Makeup could be toned down so it matches both burlesque and prison scenes. This means there wont have to makeup changes between scenes too?
- Painted on masks type make up, with a gradient fading down the face possibly. Goes with the burlesque, ring leader, front man characterisation.
- Boyish, defined contouring to create an 'evil' pointed, sharp looking character.
- Military styled red jacket, or red tail coat and a top hat.
- Black, red, gold, colour scheme to go with the burlesque Underworld club.
- Dramatic contoured makeup.
Around the 70's burleque as a historic and original art form began dying out, as as early as the 1930's there was a social crackdown from the public, claiming burlesque to be obscene and distasteful, gradually leading to its downfall. Revived during the late 90's by indpependant entertainers wishing to bring the glamour and beauty back to burlesque, the foundations of what is now known as 'neo-burlesque' could be seen, bringing us to the style we see in modern day. Dita Von Teese is a famous name in this style, a lot of her looks inspired from 40's burlesque, but obviously with the corsetry and hints of modern day stylings.
1970s: Contemporary American cabaret, Liza Minnelli is a big name in this era, arty, stylised, nods to earlier decades, YMCA as an examples of 70's cabaret.
1980s and 1990s: Burlesque and cabaret really seemed to really die out during this time, with not a lot of examples I could find or read up on, showing that the decline in burlesque was predominantly around this time.
Early 90'-2000's: Neo burlesque revival, brighter colours, corsets, influences from previous eras, diffrerent varities of style, e.g. pastel, gothic, punk, rave, abstract, couture etc.
As the interpretation of 'Orpheus' that we're working on has a burlesque theme running through it, I decided to look through the history of this fashion, as the current era is undecided. The decade of choice is important to our transposal of 'Orpheus' as it will affect the decisions of both set and costume. Currently, the Performing Art's students refer to the era they want as 50's burlesque, however this may not apply to the fashion they really have in mind, hence the research into the separate decades. The examples they brought in consisted more of modern day lingerie than recognisably burlesque or traditional cabaret styled outfits, so putting this time-line together and giving them the option to pick out which style and era they prefer would be beneficial.
1920s: Big fans, intricate jewelry, play on an innocent look, feathers, head-dresses, feather bowers.
1930s: Androgynous, stockings, floaty unfitted clothing, use of props.
1940s: Long flowing robes and night wear, elegance, femininity, more fitted than previous.
1950s: Corsets properly introduced into art of burlesque, fitted, suspenders.
1960s: Corsets, robes, playboy bunnies debuted adding to the skimpier, tighter corseted look.
During our visit we discussed potential costume and set themes as well as motifs to continue through both 'Orpheus' and the other plays.
The initial idea presented by the Performing Arts students was to design and make a tall thin cage on wheels that would hold the character of Eurydice, representing a subject of entrapment. However, this would introduce the difficulty of transporting and building large pieces of set in the short amount of time it is we have, as well as potentially using majority of the budget on one piece.
Instead, the idea of taking inspiration from Alexander McQueen's caged fashion was suggested and rather than creating a cage for the character of Eurydice to stand in, she could become the cage herself. As the rest of the production uses hints of costume and set to suggest themes and environments, this metaphoric costume idea would fit in with the rest of the symbolic aesthetic we're working with.
Influence map for Eurydice cage costume concept:
The left column displays Alexander McQueens regal head cage piece. I like how even though this head piece is obscuring the models face, the cage itself is beautiful and delicate looking. This feminine or intricate look could inspire designs for the costume of Eurydice.
The middle column shows several example of modern cage fashion, moving from just the head to the rest of the body. These look less couture but definitely simpler to make. I'm particularly drawn to the copper looking leg pieces, as they almost resemble a rib cage; having skeletal themed costume could also be symbolic of the Underworld and themes of death in the original Greek myth.
The right column shows a useful process of making example and a structured LED body cage, which could potentially tie in with both the burlesque theme and the sleezy 'Underworld' night club theme too.
3rd March 2016
Here shows the TV Production students visiting our work room for the second briefing. During this meeting all ideas for costume prop and set were pitched to the production team and discussed. As an outcome it was agreed that the set was two be shrunk down in order to cut our making time and material cost.
As I researched into costume, I realised that within the time restraint it would be difficult to create two adult sized Victorian school uniforms from scratch to fit two models yet to be decided. Because of this, as well as budget it was decided that the costume for the adult contestants would be sourced from the TV students and their own budget.
The props that were in a state of almost being finished were also presented to the students, who were really pleased with the progress and size/ shape/ style, giving good feedback.
Above is the mood board presented to the TV Production students at the briefing, displaying images of Victorian childrens clothing. The clothes pattern would be fairly simple for the girls pinny and dress, but the budget and time taken to gather fabric would have been unrealistic with the quick pace of this project.
A map a drafted together in Photoshop showing the main locations toured with students and tutors. These consisted of a wide variety of potential performance spaces, from a ballet room with use of mirrors, windows and a brick wall to the Great Hall with pre-built seating and wings.
Above are images of the spaces I think would suit the play 'Orpheus' that was assigned with a group of students just for the day. We discussed it being set as part of an underground club or brothel in France or America, called 'Underworld' as opposed to the actual afterlife as is written in the original Greek myth. For this we looked for tighter enclosed places that will look fuller or busier with a smaller amount of people in them. Darker places with industrial vibes also matched this theme well.
