Unit(s): Fundamentals of Production/Stage Makeup
Purpose:
To demonstrate the techniques of shading, highlighting, and lining to create old age
Objective:
Students will apply old age makeup - demonstrating skill at shading, highlighting, and lining.
Materials:
- Handout -- "Old Age Makeup"
- Stage makeup -- foundation, clown white, creme liner, powder, liner pencils, stipple sponge, etc.
Procedure:
- Discuss with the students the application techniques and materials necessary for old age makeup.
- Working with partners, each student makes up the back of his partner's hand to look very old. The same procedure and materials are used as in a full makeup application, but only a small amount of time and makeup are required.
Applying makeup to the hand:
When teaching old age makeup, I generally find it useful to start with the back of the hand. It saves on makeup. The students still get practice with blending, using highlights and shadows, the stippling technique and powdering. It also can be completed in one class period. There is usually enough time to redo if more practice is needed.
Materials:
Base, shadow (I like chestnut brown), highlight (white), small makeup brush or brown grease pencil, age color (medium rose is my favorite but you can use anything with a purplish tint), stipple sponge, powder, powder puff, powder brush
Application:
- Apply base to the back of the hand. Do not get makeup on the palms of the hand. Use a sponge or your fingers to blend the base from the fingertips up to the wrist. Be sure to get in between the fingers.
- Shadow using chestnut brown the following areas:
a. Between the knuckles at the base of the fingers
b. Arc between the first finger and thumb
c. On the finger joints.
d. The hollow between each finger
e. Side of the hand below the thumb- Veins - using chestnut brown and a brush or your finger (or grease pencil) draw in veins on the top of your hand. Use a "Y" or pitchfork type design. Don't get the lines too close together or too heavy.
- Highlight - use white and brush, place highlights above every shadow. Highlight the tops of the knuckles and touch the finger joints.
- Skin texture - Touch the stipple sponge to the medium rose and then lightly stipple the entire hand getting a freckled look.
- Powder - Generously apply translucent powder over the area and pat the powder into place.
- Fingernails - You can also use a little medium rose rubbed into the base of the fingernail for extreme old age.
Removal:
- Rub cold cream over the entire hand.
- Using a tissue wipe off as much of the makeup as possible.
- Wash hand in soap and water.
Just a few makeup tips...
- More is not better. . . .The old idea that the size of the theatre depends on how heavy you wear your makeup is as outdated as gas lights. Actors applied heavy makeup to compensate for inadequate lighting not for the size of the theatre.
- The face is a canvas to be painted. . . We do paint the face but we all realize that our faces certainly are not flat and all those bumps and curves must be taken into consideration.
- Black and White . . . Light skinned actors work with shadows and dark skinned actors work with highlights.
- There are no rules in applying makeup . . . . Do what works!