Thursday, March 25, 2010
How to fake tattoos for the stage
SFGate: "How do you create stage tattoos that won't smear on costumes but aren't durable enough to interfere with actors' future casting options? Sometimes with a brush, sometimes with fabric."
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9 comments:
Working in the costume shop for this mini, and seeing Richard take form in that space, I've taken a real interest in seeing how the tattoos are taking shape and how much they change the audience's perception of the characters. The idea of transferring the tattoo art onto body stockings is simply brilliant. I'm betting that this method is endlessly more effective and needs much less upkeep, as well as looking more realistic. The fabric, as far as I can assume, stretches with the skin, won't peel or grow dull with wear, and has a better presence on the stage. Bravo to the Rep costume shop and this creative idea--I hope others use the same method when dealing with such a heavily inked character.
I always wondered how you faked tattoos for films or theater, especially for films like 'Snatch' and 'Memento' where the main characters are all tatted up. Because there are so many close ups like and since films are recorded over long periods of time and need precision and accuracy I would imagine stockings can't work for a lot of these scenarios but the idea is cool. I was also reading another article before about some artist who specialized in doing fake tattoo design, since its a lot different than other costume make up applications, it would be interesting to have to do that for a CMU show.
This is an interesting article considering that our character of Richard in Richard III will have a full-sleeve tattoo throughout the run. I find it interesting that there are several different methods to do this, depending on how you need it to appear or how long it should last. I also am intrigued by the idea of a body stocking, and I wonder how often that becomes the use when an actor is in tattoos.
Tattoos are a key element in revealing character traits for very specific characters. This is why an actor with an actual tattoo is at a disadvantage. The tattoo must either be covered up or the director must believe that the character would have that tattoo.
On the other side, tattoos can also be used to create a character. The idea of a body stocking seems the most practical as well as the most durable. I also think that this would provide the most variance and design options. I think that as tattoos are becoming as valid a way to show character as any other element of costumes and am glad that more practical ways are being thought of.
Wow this is definitely a very timely article, with the tattoos we have in Richard III. I know we are trying something akin to henna tattoos or possibly just the peal on tattoos. Either way, I know we've been experimenting and these ideas seem so cool. Unfortunately i don't know how well the body stocking would work on a face, but it is definitely a very creative idea. I look forward to seeing exactly how we do our tattoos for Richard.
This is an interesting article, but I wish it would have covered other methods as well. Henna is certainly a possibility. It seems that most of the options are either a one time process like the body stockings, or are something that only need to be touched up every few days, which would certainly be more efficient than redoing the tattoos every night. The on-skin methods would be certainly be a nuisance for performers who would have to care for them all the time. They also are not able to shed them like removing a costume, but have to live with them as long as they have their role.
I think the ways that you can fake tattoos on stage is really interesting. It's really important to find a way to fake a tattoo so that a makeup person won't need to spend two hours before each performance recreating the tattoo. I really like the idea of making a body stocking, especially when a lot of the actors body will need to be covered in tattoos. This way, it's not going to fade, and the makeup people won't need to worry about constantly touching up the tattoo. Also, this way, the actor doesn't need to deal with having the tattoo even when the show isn't going on, during the day, etc.
I agree with many of the statements made in this particualr article. The way that artists use the stockings to create a tatoo that can be used and reused for a stage performance that doesn't require actual attachment to the skin is a remarkable use of technology. I think that the use of these stocking allows for an extremely realisitic style of tattto to be protrayed ontage. I know that a similar stocking is used in Wicked for covering the character of Elphaba's arms and chest.
I've been wondering for a while about how people fake tattoos for theater and film, and this article brings up a lot of interesting techniques. I like the idea of the stocking, but I wonder how it lasts through repeated washings--as would be inevitable considering there is nothing protecting the sleeve from the oils and sweat on the actor's skin. I think I like the Kryolan Body Illustration paint technique best. I actually saw a picture of Meredith (Grad costume designer) when she got the fake rose tattoo for Richard (I assume that was what it was for, considering the flower image was the exact same) and it looked like the artist was using an airbrush. I wonder how that technique would work compared to these.
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