Sara MUA- BraveNewWorldProject

Tuesday 1 December 2015

Bibliography

Websites:

Books:

Wissensspeicher Biologie, Siegfried Brehme, 1996, Cornelson Scriptor
Linder Biologie, Herrmann Linder, Schroedel, 2010, 2012
On the Origin of Species by means of Natural Selection, Charles Darwin, originally published 1859
The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication, Charles Darwin, 1868 published by John Murray
Atlas of Human Anatomy for the Artist, Stephen Rogers Peck, Oxford University Press, 1951
Human Anatomy for Artists, Eliot Goldfinger, Oxford University Press, 1991
Egyptian Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Goddesses, and Traditions of Ancient Egypt, Geraldine Pinch, Oxford University Press, 2004
The Mythical Creatures Bible: The Definitive Guide to Legendary Beings, Brenda Rosen, Sterling Publishing Company, Inc., 2009
Mythical Creatures, Linda S. Godfrey, Rosemary Ellen Guiley, Infobase Publishing, 2009
Big Book of Dragons, Monsters, and Other Mythical Creatures, Ernst Lehner, Johanna Lehner, Courier Corporation, 2004
Treasury of Fantastic and Mythological Creatures: 1,087 Renderings from Historic Sources, Richard Huber, Courier Corporation, 1981

Films/Clips/Documentaries:

This term we learned how to make flat moulds using Silicone. First we had to make a sculpture from clay to make our wounds and later the pieces we needed for our hybrid. When working with clay it is important to do a lot of research before you start to make sure your piece will look realistic. Pay attention to details! When spraying fixing spray and petrolease you have to wear a mask covering your mouth and nose and do it in front of an open window. When you start working with the Silicone A, Silicone B and Deadener you must always wear gloves and change them anytime you switch between the different Silicones. It is from most importance to also keep the Silicone containers clean and use different sticks as you will otherwise contaminate the Silicone and then have to throw it away. Also remember not to have any Aloe Vera or garlic on you as the Silicone stops working when it gets in contact with those. I had many problems with the Silicone throughout this unit. Either it didn’t dry properly or the air bubbles caused unwanted texture in the Silicone piece or generally when working with bigger pieces it was sometimes hard to guess how much Silicone was needed so I had sometimes not enough and had to react quickly. But I also had to change and redo sculptures because they were probably contaminated (or too big), even though I stored them safely in the sandwich box, but it helped me to understand how important it is to keep everything really clean for the Silicone to work. I believe I learned a lot of useful skills for my future life and career, for example mould making, sculpting and creating characters through flat mould pieces. I also learned even more the importance of research (especially that not everything is true what’s on the internet), detailing and accuracy.

Evaluation

This unit we learned how to create different characters using silicone flat moulds. We learned how to make sculptures with clay and how to make moulds using Silicone A, Silicone B and Deandener. We also learned the factors that influence silicone like Aloe Vera and garlic and how to behave when working with fixing spray and the appropriate health and safety for working with Silicone. Throughout this unit I had to do a lot of research regarding the wound I had to create and especially for the hybrid project. I noticed for both that you have to be careful with the content from the internet. Especially if you look for wound references. I also had to overcome a lot of problems with the silicone. I had a lot of times when the silicone didn’t dry properly and I had to throw away the whole mould and sculpture as I suspected that something contaminated it. Then I had to redo my wound sculpture as I did not pay attention when it came to the sculpting and instead of making it come outwards I made it go inwards and that cost me a lot of silicone for moulds as it took me forever to realize what was wrong. For my hybrid I had to carefully thing about my design and had to change it a few times as I had to keep in mind if I actually would be able to do it in a certain amount of time and had to make sure it looks realistic. Therefore it was very important to me to do a deep research on the anatomy of human and the vampire squid (my chosen element). What I found a bit difficult was to imagine how my pieces would look on the model and if it would actually work out.

Final Shoot: Hybrid overall character

Evaluation after paint job:

The paint work for this character wasn't too complicated so I managed to get the painting done quite quickly, But even though it is easy there are still things you have to pay attention to. For instance is it better to work here with a sponge and dab the colour on as I noticed before that when I used a brush to apply the supercolor onto the silicone pieces it turned out very patchy . Also even if you use a sponge just really dab the colour on otherwise you will pick up the colour again and it gets patchy as well and my design is supposed to be as very smooth even look so I can't have unevenness in the colour. Also it is important that the different red tone nuances are gradually going into each other. no hard edges. I kept adding more darker red tones on the lower side of the cheek bones pieces to make them even more outstanding and it worked quite well. I did the same with the fore head pieces only that I here applied the colour on the sides. It is a bit unfortunate that the silicone came off above the eyes because with the colour on it enhances the edges even more. When I took the images for just the application it didn't look like this. I also like how the colored contact lenses work so well with the blue around the eyes Because I wanted to give the impression that all of the blue is the eye I am glad the blue I choose worked so well. It would have been even better to get full eyed lenses but I have only seen them in black so far. But that would have been awesome. I am very relieved how the decollete part turned out as it was very patchy during the practice. Also I have noticed that the food colouring and latex don't mix well, I first thought I could just pour red food colouring into a bit of latex and would get red latex which I then could easily apply but as soon as I poured the food colouring into the latex the red turned into blue clumbs. Then I tried applying the red first and over it latex but the latex turned out patchy and had this blueish hue as well, In the end I dabbed on the latex with a sponge real quickly- and you have to be careful not to pick it up again- and let it dry.When dry I stippled on the red with a sponge as well and I got this really nice shiny texture.Also I applied the same red supercolor tone the neck has on decollete and shoulders so it would match later on. I didn't do it during practice and it was obvious that there were different red tones.With the latex and red food color I wanted to create this really shiny transparent skin which the Vampire squid has between his tentacles. Another important thing was to blend in the red colour into the hair. This was especially important as the part I needed for blending the forehead piece into the hair line was flooded by the silicone and I couldn't really blend it in. So I was thinking what to do to still make it look edge less, I already decided to put in red into the hair but I decided it would be even more important to intensify the red around the hair line and then blend it out down the hair. I am quite satisfied with the end result. The only thing which annoys me is that I didn't pay attention to the arms. I covered all of the shoulders with the red and latex combination and went down to armpits height but when I was taking the mid-length images I noticed that it wasn't enough so I quickly went and got the supercolor. But the application was patchy and the red tones don't match and you obviously see it in the mid-length images. And that really angers me because I should have kept that in mind. It was an obvious thing to do like it was obvious that I would have to cover the inside of the ears with red as well to match it to my character but in case with the arms I completely forgot. But well now it is too late but I learned from it. That's at least something.

Final Shoot: Hybrid Application

Evaluation Application:

Compared to the application during my practice this one is thousand times better. It took me longer than I planned on doing it but this time I payed a lot of attention to the blending. I wanted it to look seamless. And I wasn't so sure about it because when I was done with the application it wasn't partly as edge less as I wanted it to be but it looked so much better on camera which made me so happy^^.During the practice the Baldiez layer ripped right on the edge of the silicone and I couldn't really blend it in. To avoid that I did around 4-5 layers of Baldiez before I filled in the silicone and then when the silicone was set I applied another 2 layers on top of it. So it was literally covered in Baldiez layers all around .It worked out well for the cheek pieces even though I had a few bit where the silicone kept coming off as I probably blended too much but I managed to keep those bits down without glue. I just pressed them down really tightly for a minute or so and then usually they would stay down.If not I did the pushing down process a few times but in the end it stayed down. Also before you press it down make sure it is slightly covered in alcohol. It stays down better when it has a bit of liquid. But my biggest struggle was the forehead piece. After I noticed that it was too big, when I did the practice, I made a new sculpture and made it smaller and flatter. But when I poured the silicone into the negative mould it flooded on the side which points to the hairline. Unfortunately I only saw it after the silicone already set. I think the flooding happened when I quickly moved the mould while tidying up my desk when I was waiting for the silicone to set. Very annoying, because when I applied it the space that I needed for blending was gone. I applied it anyway and thought I would just have to come up with something. So I was cutting away as much of the blending layer as possible so it won't get stuck in the hair after glueing it on. I tried to blend as much as possible but the bits just before the hairline just kept breaking off. So I did the same as I did with some of the cheek parts. I just tried to press them down. I didn't look as nice but at least it would not come off anymore. But then again I wasn't worried too much about it as the forehead piece stand s out quite a lot and you don't see it if you look straight at the model. Of course it's not optimal but it was the best I could do during that situation. For the next time I really have to make sure that I have enough space for blending and that nothing is flooded. But overall I am quite content with the outcome of my application. I almost forgot another part that was a bit tricky was the eye areas as you have to be really careful because you blend with alcohol. So I told my model to really tilt her head back so none of the alcohol would run down her face or into her eyes. Also something I noticed is that again I had texture in my forehead pieces which I didn't want. I was really annoyed because my design is supposed to be really smooth and even so hopefully it won't show too much later when the paint is on. I was thinking about what the reason could be and I realized that it always happens the deeper my moulds are. So I thought I didn't give the practice mould enough time to dry as it was a really big and deep one and one hour wasn't enough. But for the assessment piece I left it to set all night and it still got texture in the end so that can't be it. Another reason could be that I didn't get rid off of the air bubbles and they caused the texture? I was looking into things that can influence silicone while it is setting , to not set or to give it texture but unfortunately I couldn't really find anything. Just the things I already know like working quickly and not to have been in touch with garlic and Aloe Vera.

Monday 30 November 2015

Hybrid practice

In today's lesson I finally got to practice my Hybrid design. I am a bit under pressure as tomorrow is already our deadline but I keep having problems with the silicone and moulds I wasn't able to do it last week. But I can do it! Anyway when I did the sculptures for the cheek pieces I did two different sizes as I wasn't sure which one would fit better. I did the moulds in Uni and the bigger ones turned out really nice and smooth but the smaller one got some texture in it as the silicone didn't dry properly( again..haha I just want to cry..I didn't think the silicone and I are a good match :D )So I decided to use the smaller ,messed up ones for practice and if I would want to use the smaller ones I just make them again but I held the bigger cheek pieces against my models face and they looked quite nice so I was thinking going with the bigger ones. Again, when I did the forehead piece, even though the negative mould was really smooth , the actual piece had texture in it which I didn't want but again as it was for practice use only, I didn't mind that much even though it really annoys me that the silicone ,sometimes(everytime I really need it) just doesn't dry properly and I still haven't figured out why. I had all the silicone pieces ready for the practice and only got some food colouring and contact lenses.Everything else I needed was in the kit already.

I was a bit worried before I started the practice, not only because of the deadline pressure but also because I wasn't sure if the forehead piece would actually fit( even though I did measure her face) and if the overall character would actually look good in real life. Somehow I couldn't imagine how the pieces would look on her so that's why I felt slightly uneasy. Also I wanted a very red transparent shiny look on her decollete and shoulders using latex and food colouring but when I tried it at home the latex always reacts with the colour and starts crumbling into big chunks.. But I tried to apply the latex first and then afterwards the colour and it is a but better. I just have to be very careful when applying the colour.

For the hybrid look you need:

silicone pieces
pros aid
pro clean
cotton buds
alcohol
two bowls
supercolor
sponges
bright blue contact lenses( in this case from Kryolan)
latex
red food colouring( also have some blue and green)
blue fish net
black top
comb
water spray
hair gel
hairdryer
clips for holding the net at the back
contact lens solution
brushes
towel
baby powder
Makeup wipes
cleanser
toner
antibacterial Makeup spray

Steps:

set up your work place and make sure you have all the tools and products you need
clean models face-> only cleanse and tone
ask model to put in contact lenses
while she is putting in the contact lenses apply the Pros Aid to the silicone pieces ( there are 3->one big forehead piece and two cheek pieces)
wait until it is almost dry and then also apply the Pros Aid onto the areas on her face where you will apply the silicone pieces
when the glue is tacky and clear ,take the pieces and make sure before you apply them that the blending layer is not curled up
stick on and press it down so it will stick properly, stretch out the blending layer and try to get no wrinkles->this makes it easier to blend it in
when pieces are glued on,get another bowl with alcohol and cotton buds and start blending->take your time for it as you want seamless edges!
when all 3 pieces are blended in clean up around them just in case there is some fluff or other leftover from the Baldiez layer->if the Baldiez layer or glue got into the hair just get a cotton pad and some ProClean and wipe it off
when areas around pieces are clean get some baby powder and just brush some on to get rid off the stickiness
when you are happy with the application take some pictures-> you need close up's for the hand in but also take some from different angles and mid-length shots
now you can start painting
get a sponge and use first supercolor number 10(red with an orangy undertone) and cover the whole face apart from the eyes->stipple it on apart from the eyes->please leave a big circle free
after that you apply the number 11 on the outside of the face and also do some shading under the jawline ,the cheeks pieces, the forehead piece and under lips->but under lips only slightly
then mix the 11(deeper red) and 6( black) to get a brownish red and contour the cheeks pieces even more->makes them stand out even more, apply also some on the forehead piece and around the hairline
fill in the eyes with the light blue which is weirdly also number 10?-> this blue color is very similar to the blue of the contact lenses so it makes it look like big blue eyes->which is what we want
blend the red and blue slightly together so there are now harsh lines around the eyes
after you applied the paint make sure everything is blended very well->colours have to be smooth and edge less
now brush the hair back and apply first some water spray to wet it down ->if the water spray is not enough get some hair gel and comb it through->we want a very sleek kind of slimy looking hair
let the hair gel dry a bit before you apply the supercolor-> then apply the different red tones and a bit of orange into the hair line and take it down slightly, with that we create the effect that the forehead pieces kind of blends into the hair and we don't have abrupt harsh edges between hair line and silicone piece
when you are happy with the hair and the overall face ask model to tuck down(or in) her t-shirt and bra straps so they are not visible anymore
then cover the shirt with a towel->to protect the shirt as well to see until where you will apply the latex and food colouring
first apply the latex; I find it is easier just to apply it with your fingers as it starts to immediately pick up when I try to apply it with a sponge
when you covered the area you wanted let it completely dry and make sure nothing gets on it like hair or the towel
when dry stipple on the red food colouring and create a shiny kind of transparent texture
let it dry
when everything is ready put the blue fishing net around her shirt and one arm->create trapped look
take final images!

Before you start insert blue contact lenses

They already make a huge difference.

Looks a bit creepy ^^

So that my model will be more comfortable while I apply the silicone pieces I told her to lie back and relax.

As you can see I applied the latex layer and food colouring already on the decollete which was a big mistake as the alcohol was running down her face dripping on it as I was blending the edges and I had to take it all off again. But I was bored while the glue was drying so I thought I could do the latex layer while waiting.But now I know I will definitely leave that part for the end.

The 3 silicone pieces are applied. But the forehead piece is definitely too big and I have to do the new smaller and flatter.

Done with applying the supercolor and doing the hair. The colour doesn't show up that much on the hair so for the actual thing I have to make the colour more intense.

And those pictures I took with an actual camera in the studio(the other pictures were taken with my phone)

Thoughts on the practice:

First off all I am quite relieved and happy with the practice outcome even though there are still things I have to change. But that is okay as you use practice to see what is working, what needs to be changed or further developed and how it actually looks. Even though I used the smaller cheek pieces and the forehead piece turned out way too big it was still very helpful to see how it would look like as I had my problems imagining it before. I knew how I wanted it to look like but I just couldn't imagine it on an actual person. But now I feel better. Also I will change the forehead piece. I will make the sculpture smaller and flatter and do a new mould , hopefully the silicone is cooperating with me:) .As for the cheek pieces I will use the bigger one as I think it will fit better with the forehead piece and they were much smoother. The thing that definitely wrong during the practice was the blending of the Baldiez layer. I think because the forehead piece was so big the blending layer just ripped off very easily . It ripped off right on the edge to the silicone which gave me now way to actually blend most of the sides but it also made the piece come off around the edges, which you can see very good especially around the eye area. But I already did like 5 layers of Baldiez because I knew it had to be a bit stringer so I didn't expect it to rip off so easily. So I was thinking to apply maybe one or two layers Baldiez after the silicone in the mould is dry , so that the silicone piece is covered in it from both sides and hopefully will last better. And I am honest after the blending layer ripped off and already looked stupid I wasn't really bothered to blend away the edges well. You can see it is quite messy, as well as the cheek parts. I know you should try to do your best even if it is just a practice. Otherwise I was quite happy how the colours turned out on the professional camera. They are more intense than on my phone. But I have to intense the red tones on the hair so it looks more blended in. As for the neck and decollete part I need to match the different red tones better. On the neck I still used the supercolor and on the decollete latex and food colouring. And you can clearly see the difference . I will experiment a bit more with those to see what works best. Otherwise I think if I blend better tomorrow and the blending layer is not ripping off it will look quite alright :)And I need to adjust her shirt and the fishing net for the actual shoot

Saturday 28 November 2015

Hybrid design: Step by Step

Products needed:

silicone pieces
pros aid
pro clean
cotton buds
alcohol
two bowls
supercolor
sponges
bright blue contact lenses( in this case from Kryolan)
latex
red food colouring( also have some blue and green)
blue fish net
black top
comb
water spray
hair gel
hairdryer
clips for holding the net at the back
contact lens solution
brushes
towel
baby powder
Makeup wipes
cleanser
toner
antibacterial Makeup spray

->hair chart

->face chart

Step by Step:

set up your work place and make sure you have all the tools and products you need
clean models face-> only cleanse and tone
ask model to put in contact lenses
while she is putting in the contact lenses apply the Pros Aid to the silicone pieces ( there are 3->one big forehead piece and two cheek pieces)
wait until it is almost dry and then also apply the Pros Aid onto the areas on her face where you will apply the silicone pieces
when the glue is tacky and clear ,take the pieces and make sure before you apply them that the blending layer is not curled up
stick on and press it down so it will stick properly, stretch out the blending layer and try to get no wrinkles->this makes it easier to blend it in
when pieces are glued on,get another bowl with alcohol and cotton buds and start blending->take your time for it as you want seamless edges!
when all 3 pieces are blended in clean up around them just in case there is some fluff or other leftover from the Baldiez layer->if the Baldiez layer or glue got into the hair just get a cotton pad and some ProClean and wipe it off
when areas around pieces are clean get some baby powder and just brush some on to get rid off the stickiness
when you are happy with the application take some pictures-> you need close up's for the hand in but also take some from different angles and mid-length shots
now you can start painting
get a sponge and use first supercolor number 10(red with an orangy undertone) and cover the whole face apart from the eyes->stipple it on apart from the eyes->please leave a big circle free
after that you apply the number 11 on the outside of the face and also do some shading under the jawline ,the cheeks pieces, the forehead piece and under lips->but under lips only slightly
then mix the 11(deeper red) and 6( black) to get a brownish red and contour the cheeks pieces even more->makes them stand out even more, apply also some on the forehead piece and around the hairline
fill in the eyes with the light blue which is weirdly also number 10?-> this blue color is very similar to the blue of the contact lenses so it makes it look like big blue eyes->which is what we want
blend the red and blue slightly together so there are now harsh lines around the eyes
after you applied the paint make sure everything is blended very well->colours have to be smooth and edge less
now brush the hair back and apply first some water spray to wet it down ->if the water spray is not enough get some hair gel and comb it through->we want a very sleek kind of slimy looking hair
let the hair gel dry a bit before you apply the supercolor-> then apply the different red tones and a bit of orange into the hair line and take it down slightly, with that we create the effect that the forehead pieces kind of blends into the hair and we don't have abrupt harsh edges between hair line and silicone piece
when you are happy with the hair and the overall face ask model to tuck down(or in) her t-shirt and bra straps so they are not visible anymore
then cover the shirt with a towel->to protect the shirt as well to see until where you will apply the latex and food colouring
first apply the latex; I find it is easier just to apply it with your fingers as it starts to immediately pick up when I try to apply it with a sponge
when you covered the area you wanted let it completely dry and make sure nothing gets on it like hair or the towel
when dry stipple on the red food colouring and create a shiny kind of transparent texture
let it dry
when everything is ready put the blue fishing net around her shirt and one arm->create trapped look
take final images!

Afterwards:

help model get off the silicone pieces by using ProClean and get some cleanser, toner or Makeup wipes and clean her face
ask her to take out the contact lenses
wash and blow dry her hair
clean up your work place->wipe surface with flash wipes
spray your palette with antibacterial Makeup spray