MASKS
Designing and fabricating false faces.

This course was aimed at first year undergraduate Theatre Arts students to encourage the development of visual imagination and creation.

Masks are ubiquitous in almost all cultures. As far back as the Upper Paleolithic Era (50,000 years ago) the use of masks was already known. Masks have been used for many purposes: ritual and religion – storytelling and entertainment – modesty and secrecy – and of course, as we know from the pandemic, for health protection.

On this course made masks using different materials and methods; some were created very quickly and expressively, forcing ourselves to make quick aesthetic decisions, and others required a longer design and fabrication process, including full face casting. Underlying our creative decisions was a consideration of how character and story is signalled through the creation of a ‘false face’.

Please note: The tasks in this workshop were almost all about using hands and eyes. Most exercises were non-verbal and therefore suitable for students of all English language ability.

The first practical task was to work with a very tight timeframe of just 20 minutes and to use recycling materials.

Working with a stocking base.

Students learnt how to make a full face mask with plaster bandage and then to build up layers to form a hard shell mask bespoke to their own face.

Having created the plaster base, students went on to design and fabricate their specific design.

For the final mask of the course students were open to design and fabricate from scratch.

Objectives:
• To design and fabricate eight different masks.
• To consider the relationship between mask and character development.
• To develop a visual vocabulary and design aesthetic.
• To consider the cultural history and importance of masks.
• To develop confidence in English comprehension.

Useful Books:
The Power of Masks by Walter Van Beriendonck. 2017. Rotterdam: Marked/Lannoo. ISBN 978-94-014-4295-4
Mask Improvisation for Actor Training and Performance by Sears A. Eldredge. 1996. Evanston: Northwestern University Press. ISBN 0-8101-1365-1
Mask: in Present-Day Art ed. by Madeleine Schuppli. 2019. Zurich: Scheidegger Und Albert Spiess A&G, Verlag. ISBN 978-3-85881-645-0