I did this basic drawing to show my really simple design that I am going to create for my second attempt at a tribal look.
I want to keep it as basic as possible to show the techniques I'm using which is wax for the forehead and rice with latex going across the cheek.
I decided to not follow the same pattern of rice on the other side of the face as I quite like the idea of the forehead scar flowing into the rice texture.
- Brush through your models hair making sure there are not knots and then spray the hair with water making sure it's completely wet right through
- The you need to cover the hair with hair gel and brush it through, don't be afraid to use a lot as the hair needs to be as flat to the head as possible
- My models hair was quite long and thick so it was easier to split the hair into 2 sections, take one section and brush it flat onto the opposite side and wrap it round to the top of the head
- Repeat this with the other section of hair and press it all down onto the head to make sure it's flat
- Now it's flat you can put the cap on, get your model to help by pulling the front over their forehead while you pull it over the back
- Once it's on start cutting the excess of the bald cap to fit around the models face, do small bits at a time so you don't end up over cutting!
- Use spirit gum to glue the cap to the head, I find starting at the front of the head is best then you can pull it tight before gluing down the back
- Acetone helps to blend the edges of the cap into the skin so use a small amount on a cotton bud and lightly dab the edges until they melt away
- It's now ready to colour! If you are doing a skin coloured head then first cover it with a pinky/red greasepaint, this blocks out the darkness of the hair underneath!
I painted my cap in a bit of a rush as I ran out of time! I used a gold spray paint which I actually really like the effect of as it dries quite matte. I would have like the application to be tighter to the head which I know now for next time and to also try out lots more different designs using all sorts of materials, colours and shapes.
The gold has covered the edges of the bald cap quite well but they were far from perfect which is something I need to work on, I'd also like to try different brands of bald caps rather than the Kryolan ones we used during the practical session.
I picked these images as there are from real tribes in Africa as this is what I wanted to source my inspiration from. Each picture is different from one another in texture and shape which I found really interesting as it shows how every tribe is different from one another and they show this is so many different ways.
I had an idea for my first image to create an antelope type character using a bald cap, horns made from a clay mould and latex, wax to change the shape of the nose and oats to give texture to the face. I don't think I wanted the human face to be recognizable as I was going for an animalistic approach which I now understand was completely wrong.
I didn't practice the look properly beforehand so it didn't work how I wanted it to, particularly when attaching the horns to the bald cap. The latex was layered too thick at the bottom which meant it didn't stick onto the bald cap easily and it looked sloppy. I spent so much time doing this that the makeup on the face was rushed and I couldn't perfect the wax on the nose.
I also used a model that had a beard which I should have put into consideration as it really didn't work. Basically it was all over the place and a complete mess!!
Looking back at my image now I'm extremely unhappy with it. At the time I thought we were supposed to incorporate all the techniques we had been taught so far to our designs and I concentrated far too much on the body modification side of the unit that Sharon was talking about. I got myself lost and panicked about everything and I don't really have the answers as to why I came up with what I did.
Now that I have had a chat with Sharon I completely understand that my design should be based on tribalism so I am now going to do some more research to try and come up with something related to this that's simple but effective.
A 'Bagel Head' is part of Japanese body modification where saline is injected into the forehead then pushing into the centre to create a bagel shaped lump under the skin. The 2 hour treatment lasts as long as 24 hours when the forehead eventually reduces back to normal from being absorbed by the body.
It's been in Tokyo for almost 8 years and fans of the procedure even hold saline parties or go to clubs and fetish parties with their Bagel Heads.
I have never heard of anything like this before! I find it odd and disturbing that people can think it looks "cute" and surely it's dangerous? Even so, it's an interesting procedure to read about and useful in my research towards body modification.
Our task was to find portrait photographs and modify them using different materials or by drawing on them. Now I find this type of thing but am actually surprisingly pleased with the outcomes! The image below is the first one I did and i specifically chose it as I thought I could do something with the teeth and I liked how the crazy the hair is. I coloured in the teeth with all the different coloured pens I had and then pulled apart pieces of a feather and stuck them onto the hair to create the shape of it.
With the next portrait I ripped up small pieces of tissue paper, scrunched them up and stuck them onto the eyebrows. There was something about it that made me think clown so i drew lines on the side of the mouth to extend it into a joker type smile and then dotted the lips using 2 different highlighter pens. I also put the dots under the eyes to match, the black spikes on the nose were just to add something to the middle of the face but I think I could have left them out!
I decided to draw onto the outline of the face on this one with an orange greasepaint from my Kryolan palette, I then feathered it out onto the face using a sponge. I really like the effect and wish I had left it there but I thought it needed something more which is why I stippled on some black greasepaint with a stipple sponge but I don't like the result of it.
