Practical Session: Contemporary Elizabethan Make-up

In this session, I was told to create a contemporary Elizabethan look inspired by the photo below.

This was the outcome

Products used: 

Illamasque Satin Primer 

Illamasque White foundation

Illamasque Loose Powder 

Screenface neutral eye shadows 

Kryolan lip palette 

MAC black liner 

Illamasque Disobey 

I followed the following procedure: 

1. Gown model and clip hair away from her face. 

2. Prep face and consult 

3. Mix a little satin primer with white foundation and apply evenly to face with flat foundation brush. 

4. Blend and buff foundation into skin with large buffing brush. 

5. Using a disposable mascara wand, comb through eyebrows with white foundation. 

6. Powder with Illamasque loose powder with a large powder brush.

7. Using a matte brown shadow and a base shadow brush, apply to the eyelids. 

8. Using a shading brush, pact a darker brown onto the outer V of the eyes creating a wing and bring down onto outer portion of the lash line. 

9. With the rest of the shadow on the brush, use it to contour the nose. 

10. Using MAC black liner, line the top lash line, creating a wing. 

11. Curl lashes and apply mascara to top and bottom 

12. Contour the face using a large angled brush, creating dark shadows under the cheekbones and a little on the temples. 

13. Line lips with black eyeliner, creating a strong shape and exaggerate the cupids bow. Fill in lips. 

(In the original photo the models lips are filled out and exaggerated but I wanted to keep my models lips small and stern looking) 

14. Using a lip brush, apply a wine red colour to the centre of the lips and blend out. 

15. Powder the lips to give a matte finish. 

16. Using a small angled brush, go round the lips with the foundation used to create a very clean cut sharp edge. 

Hendrik Kersten

The photos of the Contemporary Elizabethan Makeup really remind me of Dutch photographer Hendrik Kersten's work. 

Hendrik Kersten is a Dutch photographer, in 1995, he turned to a model close to hand; his daughter Paula. Time and time again, he uses his daughter as a model, as if he is trying to immortalise her and to stop time. I love the contrast within his work, his work evokes a creepy atmosphere, the white and black reminds me of death , Paula is captured beautifully but also with a ghostly stare.

The use of everyday objects as garments are very inspiring, you have to look closely to see what has been used. I really want to incorporate this into my work in the future, experimenting with different colours and textures.

Hendrik Kersten's work look like portrait paintings, you can see similarities between his work and paintings of the italian renaissance. his work greatly reminds me of the famous portrait, 'Girl with the pearl earring'.