MIRROR IMAGE
ONES ALTER EGO OR HIGHER SELF
PAINTING AND FINISHING
FILLING THE MOULDS, MATCHING SKIN TONES AND ADDING FINE DETAIL
Above:
I followed this basic colour chart when referencing the models skin tone, the model has a warm yellow base and a light to medium skin tone and the colours show similarities.
-The left hand page shows suggestions for darkening the basic skin colours, the right hand page shows suggestions for lightening the basic skin colours.
-The colours in the left hand column are added in increasing amounts to basic skin colour. Three different mixes are shown above. On the right hand page there has been increasing amounts of white added to the basic skin shades.
-Along the bottom of each page there are various colour mixes for the lips, hair and eyes relevant to the skin tone.
Above, I kept a dish of Pro Gel 10 silicone- relevant skin tones to suit all areas of the models face, including her natural skin base and contoured- highlighted areas. The darker plum colours I mixed to match her lip colour and blood vessels around her nose area and there are a lot of visible veins on her upper eyelids. I started with her natural skin base and added small amounts of pigment and flock to form the surrounding colours. This way the colours complimented and belonged within a category.
Use 100g more silicone than you think you need to account for the pour tube and flash. For larger pieces you do not want to go above 200% softener. Up to 230% for smaller flat piece appliances. The maths in volumes:
A - 50%
B- 50%
S- ? (180)
Total- 280%
Volume of silicone needed divided by 280= ?. This will give you your 1%, then from here you can work out accurately how much you need. This is all in ml.. Work out in grams. Afterwards, lay out the numbers clearly.
RETARDER:
Only mixes with part B in advance and you cannot use more than four parts retarder to every 100g of B. In this case you have to measure the retarder very accurately or the silicone will not set
Start with a basic flesh tone pigment and being adding blue and green to the mix. Once you have plunged the syringe, remove the body of it and allow the material to flow freely into the mould. Silicone mix a and b is injected aroumd the flashing areas, the mould is then submerged in water
SEAMING:
very small batches of silicone are measured out, fine scissors are used and cling film. Clean the silicone then spatulate the same silicone used on the piece onto small areas of silicone- then lay plastic wrap over the seam and spatulate over with the same texture used.
-Telesis thinner is used 1 to 1 and then half again with the telesis glue. Fixer spray is used with gelatine to seal it, this is useful with gelatine. Talc is used to dust over the face to keep it from sticking before adding telesis onto the prosthetic.
Horton, J. (1995) How to See, Understand and Paint Skin Tones. London: B.T. Batsford. P.P. 28-29
Gorton, N. (n/a). Creating character prosthetics in silicone: Part 4. [DVD] Neill Gorton Prosthetic Studios.
NEILL GORTON
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FIRST FILL
I made a bald cap with PS Composites Bald Cap Encapsulator and added a mix of MAC studio fix NW20 and NC15 in between layers, along side talc. The model has thick dark hair and I wanted to neutralise the colour as much as possible due to the sculpt itself being thin, I wanted to avoid any dark areas showing through the prosthetic. I coated all parts with petroleum jelly and sprayed each of them with epoxy parfilm as a release before painting. The mould was intrinsically painted and I stippled Pro Gel 10 equal parts A and B over the front and back of the mould and the core, this in a sense would encapsulate the poured silicone which would have 40% softner added. If I hadnt of stippled A and B alone over the three parts then the silicone with the added softener would have stuck to the fibreglass and I wouldn't have been able to remove it very easily.
STUART BRAY GRAVITY POUR
StuartBray. (2015). UMAEMake-UpDemoUpdate. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u13u6IpAhm8 (Accessed: 2 April 2015).
A hole is drilled into the core at the thickest point of the sculpt. A brass tube is fitted with car body filler and it is left to cure. Bleed holes are drilled into the core and covered again with car body filler
A syringe is laid into the injection tube but not plunged, gravity works the silicone into the mould and it gradually fills. As the silicone fills up the sides of the piece you will see it come through the bleed holes. It may be necessary to block them with clay after a few minutes.
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PROBLEMS FACED
This was the first mould I ran with Pro Gel 10 at 40% softener and 1% retarder, the retarder was a useful buy and worked successfully as I'd hoped it would, the mould had filled and there were no imperfections or flaws. I used Neill Gortons method of weighing out the clay to measure how many grams of silicone the mould required and I added an extra 200g to the total. The method I used:
Measuring clay: 1,497g
Plus 250 -
1747g round up to 1750g of silicone
A- 50%-
B- 50%-
D-40%
Total- 140. 1,700 divided by 140 = 11.3
11.3g = 1%... Use 11.3g of retarder.
50x11.4 = 570 each A and B and 456g softner.
The amount poured was more than enough and I was happy with the overall result, the prosthetic itself required none or very little extrinsic painting as I intrinsically painted the mould and matched the skin tone accurately with the model, based on the silicone samples I had previously mixed. The seamline was barely noticeable and I happened to overwork it whilst attempting to make it appear completely seamless, this was the first mistake I made. Secondly, during the summative exam he prosthetic ripped down one side, I had to patch the silicone in the exam and seal the prosthetic with sculpt gel which I prefer not to use. After close examination after the removal of the piece I noticed that were the sculpt was so thin at the back, the silicone had ripped in an area were I hadnt laid power stretch netting on the core. This was a good learning curve for me and I was pleased that it happened during the exam and not for the final filming of the finalized make up. I will look to surround the back of the head and neck with power netting- laid to stretch horizontally and not vertically, leaving no gaps.
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RESULT
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SECOND FILL
I applied the same technique as above except I added more softener: 50x11.4= 570 each A and B and 520g softner. I also thought that along side adding more power net to the core for stability, making the prosthetic softer meant it would have more flexability during application. I applied the power net around the base of the neck and the back of the head and mixed up the silicone ready to gravity pour the mould. The images above are examples of how I mixed the colours in separate containers before combining the material as one. I wanted the silicone and the softener to vary in colour as separates in order to gain an accurate match once I brought them to mix.
I preferred the colours of the freckles on the second prosthetic as they were an accurate match to the models natural moles, particularly the mole on her neck. However, the second fill did not work, the two silicone skins were flawless but held mass amounts of air bubbles between the two layers. After seeking advice from technician Wayne Humphrey and prosthetic artist Stuart Bray, I believe that this happened due to the sculpt being extremely thin around the neck and the power netting- with the two silicone skins was too thick. Therefore, the silicone was trapped inside of the mould during the gravity pour and air pockets formed. Whilst I was stippling the power nett to the core I was applying a lot of silicone and this created a problem during the fill, the piece was not of a good enough standard to be filmed and I was unhappy with the result.
I had to seek out more Pro Gel silicone and run the mould again in order to correct the mistake ready for filming the next day, initially this panicked me because the only silicone available to purchase immediately was Pro Gel 0 and I hadnt used the product before. I called Ps Composites and had a conversation about the product, its uses and similarities to the Pro Gel 10, how to use it and what I shouldn't do (use the pro gel 10 softner with the 0). I learned that the product was at a 0 shore measuring around 40% softener- similar to the first run with the gel 10 which I was happy with the result of and I purchased the product right away.
FINAL FILL
For the final fill I was very careful of over stippling the ProGel 10 onto the front and back of the mould and in particularl, the core, were the problem seemed to occur the first and second time around. I laid on the power netting in wider sections, however, the power nett wasn't overlapping itself as it did on the second run and I felt the mould would benefit from this. The focus area for the netting was either side of the head, just behind the ears and around the base of the neck, which was the area the material ripped during the first application.
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To pigment all three of the prosthetic heads, I used Ps Composites silicone pigments in: red, blue, yellow, white and flesh. I also used a mix of technovent pigments in blue, yellow and tan. For the third fill I had to use two 500g tubs of ProGel 0 A and two 500g part B, disregarding the measurements for the softener as I'd previously accounted for: 1747g round up to 1750g of silicone
A- 50%-, B- 50%-
Total- 100. 1,750 divided by 100 = 17.5
17.5g = 1%... Use 17.5g of retarder.
50x 17.5= 875g A and B
Below is a cip of how i distributed the pigments into each separate container to finally combine them, I was left with an exact skin match and was happy with the colouring and the opacity of the material.
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Personally, I was overwhelmed with the result of the final mould, the colouring was an exact match to the models natural skin base and freckling/ moles and the veining/ broken capillaries around the apples of the cheeks, the eyes and the back of the head, all looked natural and authentic to me, judging by my reference images. The issue I had was with the Silicone I purchased, the tubs are marked to weigh 500g and I measured each individual tub to be around 400g or just above (accurately, on electric food scales which weigh to the point). As this was the only silicone I had to run the third mould, there wasnt any spare to continue the pour and therefore the gravity fill stopped as it reached the base of the neck. This was problematic as I felt as though my sculpt itself was of a high standard and would have liked to show this in the prosthetic. However, luckily the silicone formed a perfect rounded line at the base of the neck and the edges did not look messy, only there was no blending edge to work with. During the film the model would be wearing a turtle neck- futuristic style of dress and therefore this wasn't a problem for the make-up, I patched up the back for ease during the application process but left the front as it was. Overall I was more than happy with the final result and only little effort was necessary during extrinsic painting, due to intrinsically painting the mould prior to the fill.
RESULT
MODELS FEEDBACK AND SLIGHT ADJUSTMENTS:
During the first application there was lace sewed into the nose compartment of the prosthetic, this catered for the models breathing. The lace insert was lined up accurately as I wanted to avoid any discomfort for the model. Communication throughout was very important and I asked her a number of questions about her discomfort and her breating after the exam had come to an end. She explained that the prosthetic itself did not feel heavy; that the lace insert worked well and that it could probably be narrower as there was excess lace either side of her nostrils; and that although her eyes were covered, she could see shapes and general outlines through the silicone as it was so thin in that particular area. I thoroughly appreciated the feedback and felt grateful of the models honesty throughout. Taking this on board, I narrowed the lace around the nose and applied magnets either side which greatly benefited the connection between both parts of the make-up. For the purpose of the exam and photographs a lace insert was not necessary as the prosthetic wouldnt be adhered to her face and neck for longer than three hours (this was discussed witht he model before the application). However, for the filming day I used a SwanMorton surgical scalpel to cut a straight line through the silicone, creating a tunnel through to the models mouth. This meant she could drink throughout and speak as she pleased.
THE ACCESSORY FEATURES
REASONING FOR PAINTING:
The individual features were all intrinsically painted, I didn't want to paint the features at all if possible once I had de moulded them and the technique is a one that im particularly interested in building on. I used silicone pigments from PS Composites and technovent to colour all of the pieces and mix the skin base colours and although all of my models were of a different ethnicity, the pieces would be matched to the models natural skin tone - and the face. The idea was to take all of those features and fit them to a new face, changing that persons identity. I wanted to show the importance of individual facial features on the face and the role that those features play in facial recognition. If one feature is taken away, more than often the person is 'lost' and no longer identifiable to another, all of which can be seen on the research pages of this website. The other link is alter ego and personality, each individual has the right to be and feel who they want to be: In the developing world more so, where people can choose their own identities through cosmetic procedures and through the internet/media. Nobody is who they ay they are, they are only how they feel, and this alone formed the basis of the research for this project. I wanted the make up to represent individual features collectively building up a face of 'many faces' and progression into the developing world where vanity is cosmetic and individuals are increasingly forced to be facade or manipulated to fit the laws of Beauty.
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PRACTISING TECHNIQUE:
Firstly, I wanted to practise the technque on some isolated features before filling the moulds together and I was pleased that I did. Above, I used Ps Composites ProGel 10 silicone for all of the features and I didn't add in any softener, purely because I didn't want the features to move on the face once they were fixed in position. The features didn't need to be soft or moveable as they werent sitting against the models natural face. I mixed three drops of thixoropic into the silicone to intrinsically paint one of the nose moulds and back filled it with the pigmented silicone, the moulds are squish moulds and I bolted them closed to force out any excess, leaving the edges thin and sharp. The test proved that I needed a lot of practise in order to gain a successful piece and the nose looked Blotchy and discoloured, see images above.
On the backs of each mould I fixed the magnets in position with Progel 10 silicone mixed with one drop of thixotropic. The thixotropic was useful as the magnets didn't slide and stayed in position during the pour. I was happy with the mould itself and the nostrils were clear along side the edges- thin. However, the colouring needed practise and I now knew not to add in too much thixotropic to the silicone mix, the colours didn't bleed together as I'd expected and instead stayed exactly as they were laid inside of the mould.
THE SECOND FILL:
I misscalculated the second paint and used too much of the PS Composites ProGel 10 retarder in the mix for painting on the fine details inside of the mould (10% instead of 1%). Therefore, the silicone never fully cured and the features looked grainy. The moulds were left for three hours and the material still hadnt set on the two silicone skins. They were unusable and I had to repeat the process, I removed the magnets from the backs of each and fixed them into the new moulds to prevent wastage of materials. I was happy with the colouring of the new features and felt as though they were generally improving, looking more realistic and skin like. I laid in red and purple silk strands in the expected areas (around the nostrils, tips of the noses, eyelids) and painted in freckles with pigment and PRoGel 10; the thixotropic was only used to fx the magnets to the backs of the moulds and not for the detailing inside of the moulds as I wanted the colours to slide and blend together.
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THIRD FILL:
I was more than happy with the turnout of the eye moulds, ant the lips, however, the noses did not work to my satisfaction as I mixed the 'base colour' too translucent and they almost looked too see-through. They didn't look realistic to me and I wanted to run the moulds one final time with the remains of silicone I had left to work with. See images above to view the translucency.
I was impressed with the eyes in particular because the technique was new to me and I was initially unsure of how to fix the resin eyeball copes in place, inside of the mould. I used a RYOBI drill, which I purchased especially for the mould making side of the design which turned out to be the most useful tool I've purchased to date. I matched a drill bit with a screw found at the mouldmaking workshop and simply drilled a hole through the resin eye at the position were it would be held inside of the fibreglass mould. Afterwards, I then drilled a hole through the fibreglass- lining up the two perfectly, ready for pouring in the material.
FINAL FILL:
The mould worked successfully and the individual noses looked better tha expected. The veining was harsh, however, I was overwhelmed with the look and feel of the features and felt as though I'd made dramatic progress in mouldmaking and painting. This project was very important to me as I wanted to push myself into practising techniques I had never tried previously which would prepare me for the third year of study. Below are the eyes and other features before they were hair punched, during my visit to Poole hospital I was educated on the illusion of eyelashes, by using natural false eyelashes inside of the silicone- the effect worked very well and I was impressed with the result, I sliced the silicone in the middle of each eyelid and used a pointed sculpting tool to push the eyelashes into position. Once I was happy with the positioning I secured them in place with ProGel 10 silicone. I only used this method for the top eyelashes as I wanted the eyebrows and bottom lashes to look sporadic and wanted to practise the hair punching technique myself.
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HAIR PUNCHING
We have so many directions in our eyebrows so at the end of the eyebrow it is working its way towards the middle, both from the top and bottom half. If I were to punch a womans eyebrow I would use the softest hair possible, most likely mohair. When I get further into the eyebrow I am working more or less in the same direction. The growth direction differs from person to person and for a female there would be hardly any directions at all as you want it to appear very plucked. You should experiment putting the head in different angles to get the hairs in the correct positions without straining yourself, you do not want the hairs to stick out too much, you need to get down and in level with the skin. With the eyelashes it is good to have the hair coming out of every follicle as two. The hair is stuck inside of a crease and it is not important.
LarsCarlsson. (2013). AnIntroductiontoHairPunchingbyLarsCarlssonfrom:Make-UpFX.com. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65f6TaGDyT4 (Accessed: 15 May 2015).
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Initially, I watched the StanWinstonsSchool video on hair punching and flocking but didn't feel confident in the techniqe when it came to hairpunching the eyelashes and eyebrows for the eyes. The video above of Lars Carlsson was the most helpful and he explains the technique clearly, ithout any pauses or confusion. I watched the video numerous times and I think my approach to hairpunching improved towards the end of finishing the final set or eyebrows. However, I do think that it will take me a long time to understand and confidently use this technique as postiche work and hair work isn't one of my strengths. I will look to improve the skills necessary for hair punching in my third year of study were I hope to create more hair work for my professional portfolio. I used a mix of black and dark brown Asian hair for the hazel eyes (Emma Freeman) and synthetic hair for the gren eyes (James Hall) and actually thought the synthetic hair was easier overall to work with.
CHECKING THE FIT
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After the assessment I noted that the magnets were not fixed int he correct position behind the silicone on the 'head' and therefore to resolve this I bought smaller earth magnets and adhered them to the front of the prosthetic. I tested the result with the features and the connection was perfectly in line, each section was an exact fit and I couldnt have hoped for a better result.