Project Brief

            In order to pitch my ideas on our new brief I started to read Charles Dickens "Great Expectations" and began to visualise all the characters. I wanted to understand what was happening at the time in England, comical old English language (which was different from working class and elite). 

I learnt the characters as Dickens described them, as well as learn their behaviour and character traits. So far I can see how Dickens's characters are kind, and evil, funny and tragic, grotesque and moreover realistic. According to Dickens if you are not happy and your life is not fulfilled you will die at a very young age.

Estella and Miss Havisham are both crazy women in one way or another. The aspect of the project is to interpret the gothic, the terror and the sense of mystery which both characters imply on.

The context of this project is the Victorian era (mid to late 1800s). I will look into on Victorian women and historical content in more depth. Ladies and gents were expected to have education and behave in particular way. The Victorian ideal woman was the "Angle" in the house. If you are an ideal woman it was considered that you can have a happy life. London and Industrial Revolution in Britain. London was surrounded by smoke; it was everywhere, from glass lamps to coal burners and fire places.

In order to create characters, there's many things to think about and take into account. This includes my personal interpretation (creation of character that will differ from boring). Also, I have to think how the production will be captured. Most importantly in the world of HD the design and make-up application has to be precise, and beautifully accurate.

Additional things to think about the actual audience suitable for viewing: whether it's everyone, family or there is an age limit. The audience must fit the character.

Characters: Stella and Miss Havisham requirements:

Research inspirational images, talk about why I chose it and liked it.

10 minutes PP presentation 15 slides maximum. Explain your interpretation of both characters. Must include one makeup and one hair shot for each character.

PP presentation must include link to my blog. Technical sign off sheet to be shown at the end of the blog.

Everything must be uploaded as a single PP presentation file.

Important inclusions:

Drawings on my blog, makeup templates. This is important as eventually the character becomes more refined and this will allow to communicate more competently about my re-design.

According to the novel Miss Havisham never washed, probably didn't eat much at all maybe anorexic, never come out to see the sunshine and probably had some kind of dementia or deep depression. Her constant hand scratching indicates he maybe harming herself. Her skin is pale and hair ringlets are fallen out as she has not groomed for a long while. Her age is not clear though.
She really sticks out as an interesting character. In Chapter 8, Dickens describes that she lives "surrounded by mould and stopped clocks". 

Whereas young Stella is portrayed as a quite likeable and innocent character somewhere at the beginning of the novel. However, under influence of Miss Havisham and her paranoia about getting a revenge from all men in the world young Estella is grown into a femme fatale later.

I love the idea of this project as there are so many I can produce. There are so much transformations of the characters and I will be looking forward to chose any point of Stella and Miss Havisham's lives and see what I will produce at the end of it.

***
Firstly, I decided to pop around Southampton Art Gallery to get some inspiration and I found this great paintings (please click to enlarge):

I also picked up this book in the library:

 Here are few notes on Victorian makeup and beauty.

 Victorians didn't wear much make-up and ones who did it was very discreet:
Only "Nature's dewey lip". 'There is no man who does not shrink back with disgust from the idea of kissing a pair of painted lips'.

"None, but the very finest powder should be used, and the lady should be especially careful that sufficient is not left upon the face to be noticeable to the eye of gentleman'.

"If Satan has ever had any direct agency in inducing woman to spoil or deform her own beauty, it must have been in tempting her to use paints and enamelling' Madame (Lola) Montez (1818-61) who died prematurely from paralysis. She was one of the most celebrated beauties of all time, Spanish dancer (born in Ireland). The book of beauty hints bearing her name was published. The book was of Victorian prudery, common sense, conventional recipes, and advice listed from other books.

Madame Montez warned her readers about eye makeup, which she found 'absurd and ruinous to beauty'.. 'Take this fair creature and draw a black line over her softly tinctured eyes, stain their heavy fringes with a sombre hue, and how frightfully have you mutilated nature!...'