Evaluation Of Two Years of Study

Evaluation of Two Years of Study

The past two years have been a fantastic experience. I have learnt a tremendous amount. Initially I was unsure of where this course would take me. I was also very an unaware of how much my time at West Thames would teach me.

In the first year I learnt the basics of make up and more I learnt the history and the trends of the past. This helped me to quickly developed a thirst to learn more about make up, helping me to realise that I was very passionate. Contextual studies were a key aspect for me having the deeper understanding of what lead to societies choices in hair and make up and more enabled me to have confidence in styling. I learned to be creative with Banka’s fashion lessons and this helped with achieving work outside of college.

When finishing the first year I felt like a strong make up artist however when I got to the second year by the second term I surprisingly felt even more confident in artistry. The second year helped to really put my skills to the test. It provided me with more independence which tested my skills greatly. The independence of each project contributed to my growth as a make up artist outside of college. I learnt to feel confident in more areas such as film and TV which was something I lacked in the first year. This has single headedly helped me to gain my current position with Princess productions my first TV role.

When receiving my brief for the final piece I new that I wanted to create something that would show off my favourite parts of my studies and that had to be a Period look that included techniques I had learnt along the way to make it more of a challenge for myself I chose to do 1920s with the use of blocking out eye brows. This alone proved my confidence as previously I would have not chosen a twenties look to avoid the blocking of the eye brows and the very tricky finger waves. Although this was challenging I really enjoyed creating the look and new that It was a great way for me to pay homage to my wonderful time at west Thames. I took much inspiration from the work I saw on Mr Selfridge during work experience.

I felt that this would be a good contribution to the show also as well as showing variation in designs. I wanted to choose something clean and true to form rather then complicating it with fantasy or horror for example. I had not seen a straight period look before in the final show although it looks less elaborate in comparison to other grand designs I felt that it had a strong effect on the show and was a chance to show the guests the core of what we all learnt. Which I feel is Period hair and make up suitable for film and TV. Although looking back there are some improvements to be made being a perfectionist but I was still very pleased with the outcome.

In terms of my design I feel that I have successfully answered the brief. I created a look that was very suitable for a production. I showed a range of make up, styling and hair skills. I successfully styled and sourced accurate period styling designing and making my own head piece to be worn on the show. I used a range of make up skills including blocking out eye brows and achieving a lasting effect for an entire day in high temperatures on the final show day. I also created a hair style that was suitable for the era and stayed secure for the final production. These are thing that I would have struggled with had this been the first year so for this I feel very proud.

To conclude I feel very emotional coming to the end of my two years of studies. I feel ready to face the industry and I feel confident in my ability to produce make up that is suitable for any brief of any genre. My two years of study has been a roller-coaster of ups and downs but I have finished feeling strong as an artist. Going forward I want to continue to learn and grow as an artist and further my skills. I will be maintaining my understanding of the industry by referring back to my log books and using them as a foundation for future designs.