Continuity Assessment evaluation

I have enjoyed this project, despite finding it challenging: the brief at the start of the

semester was very overwhelming. 

I began my research reading ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray,’ collecting character descriptions,

watching film interpretations and looking at artists such as Francis Bacon to gain visual

inspiration of insanity and horror. Quite often, being mentally ‘mad,’ altered physical

appearance. Initially, I considered creating Dorian mid-transformation; half his face

grotesque, the other ‘beautiful’ – I then researched the physical effects of drinking, smoking,

sex, and also of general ageing and illnesses common in the Victorian era, leading me to

focus on how Gray would have realistically looked before he died.

In practicing my design, I became aware of how difficult continuity is. To make it more

manageable I parted and styled my model’s hair very precisely so that I could replicate it

exactly.

In the timed assessments, I worked well within the time limit, paying attention to health and

safety. Keeping careful notes and photos to work from helped with make-up quantities and

placement. I followed the same method twice, and was pleased with the outcomes, although

in photos the differences are a little more obvious.

A problem that I encountered was applying liquid latex to create ‘wrinkles’ – it looked dry

and patchy in final photos. Had I taken better photos of my practices, I might have

discovered this issue sooner. Annoyingly, because it looked this way in the first look, I had to

repeat it in the second assessment for continuity. I would have preferred to perfect my skills

and produce a better effect with the liquid latex – something to learn from in future projects. 

By the end of this project I feel pleased with my hard work and progression, although found

the brief a little confusing whilst working through it.