Focus Group - NTU students

10 students from BA (Hons.) Theatre Design – Nottingham Trent University

Asking a response to ‘what makes a good costume design illustrations?’ a general debate on the subject was started and key characteristics identified. Responses were recorded on a flip chart and the session ended with a summary of the discussion. Key issues which came from the discussion are précised below. All students were keen to input into the debate and the atmosphere was friendly and upbeat.

Detail was discussed as a key characteristic in particular the detail a costume maker would need to know to be able to make the costumes. In my research to date I have identified this type of detail as technical information. The students pointed out that the minimum requirement of a costume design is to be able to communicate colour and shape of the garments efficiently.

It was discussed that the characteristics of a design depended on whether the production was sourced or made. If was identified that different requirements would be needed in each situation. Too much detail in a production that was hired may hinder the costume supervisor in the restrictions that the costume designer insisted on through costume sketch.

‘What the director would want to see’ was also commented upon. The discussion around this point highlighted the roll of the costume design as a visual aid and, how the costume designer would need to take into consideration the needs of the director. They would need to communicate their vision in the best way they could to make the director understand their concepts and ideas.

An interesting discussion took place about the notion of costume design being a piece of art and in particular a student commented that she liked her work to demonstrate strong artistic skills. I asked her why she felt this way and she explained that she needed to feel proud of her design work to give her the confidence to present it to a director. A few other students agreed but did not feel this necessarily meant that the costume design needed to be beautifully and ‘artistically’ rendered but a designer should establish their own unique style. They felt this ‘style’ would help promote them as individuals as they would get recognised for its look. Another student commented that even though a costume designer should establish a unique style they still needed an element of flexibility to be able to communicate effectively the context of the production.

The overarching debate which dominated the discussion was that a costume design needed to communicate character more than anything else. They commented that a director, actors and the wardrobe personnel could all obtain a great deal of information from good communication of character in a costume illustration. It was also discussed that by communicating the character in the context of the piece by considering the style or genre helped convey more coherently the designer’s vision.

Tender - Design and realisation

Mary Barton - Design and Realisation

La Ronde - Design and Realisation

Dress Parade Mary Barton

The dress parade for Mary Barton took place in the rehearsal studio which the actors had been performing in. The challenge of this session was to manage the actors in their costumes together with their changes. The director is always distracted and not overly interested in costume, which meant that my job of managing the situation even more challenging. To add to this a number of costumes for the minor characters had not been discussed at the design stage and an image had not been generated. This was the first time I was able to get the directors opinion on these costumes. After focusing the director and organising the actors the process of looking at the costume could start. Many of the costumes were as they were in the designs and the director seemed happy with the realisation. Even the minor characters which had been a concern were successful with just a little change of hat here and there. The character of Esther did however cause a few problems. Though the costume had been realised the director and the actor both felt that the way the character had developed did not suit the costume which she was wearing. It was identified that the costume seemed to heavy in weight and too clean. We considered breaking the costume down but it was still felt that it would not be appropriate for the character who was a down and out alcoholic prostitute. It was decided at this stage that the costume needed to be revised and a new costume would be looked at at the technical rehearsal. Perhaps the design had not shown the weight of the fabric on the character. Or perhaps the communication both verbally and visually had been miss interpreted, or perhaps the character had further evolved in the actor’s realisation. I was not overly concerned as I felt it was an issue which could be rectified. With this in mind I will interview this actress at the post research stage.

La Ronde Dress Rehearsal

Since the fittings the designs had been used very little other than the design for the actress as this costume was fully cut and constructed. The costumes themselves had been the main focus. However for the actors the design had been essential as some of the hire costumes which came from Torbay only turned but a few days before the dress rehearsal. Until then the actors had to use the information on the designs as their only means of knowing the technical elements of the costume. Having this knowledge and allowing the actors (in the later stages of the rehearsal period) to rehearse with something that replicated their costume has allowed for less problems during the dress rehearsal. Other technical points were raised and some of the fastening needed to be changed to enable the actors to redress on stage with ease.

The designs were also used by the wardrobe assistant who helped the actors style their hair. I had chosen specific period hair styles especially for the female members of the cast and the designs where used at this time to achieve the look for each character.

La Ronde Costume Parade

Costume Parade

Due to the technical nature of the production it was decided that the parade should be a quick run through of the production. This not only aided the actors to see what it would be like to perform in the costumes it also enabled the wardrobe department to see any potential issues which may occur with the undressing of costume and the quick changes before the technical rehearsal; the following Tuesday.

The notes from the parade were mainly technical with little discussion over the aesthetical element of the costume. A few additional dressing gowns have been added for the modesty of the actor but on the whole other than the changes due to sourcing availability the costumes remain unchanged from the original designs. I am pleased to say that these designs have lifted off the page. Though further scrutiny will need to take place the overall look of the production has greatly been achieved.

Dress Rehearsal for Tender

Generally the only notes about the costume was about hair styles. Interestingly the hair styles in the design were impossible to recreate on the actors so an alternative needed to be considered. The actress who had resisted the to have her hair in a ‘older’ style continued to show resistance and the director had to step into rectify the situation. All issues were resolved by the second dress rehearsal. On reflection I feel that the character of Gloria and Marvin were depicted a great deal older than there characters. The faces I had chosen to collage onto the designs where not quite right. This has had a knock on affect as I think this may have influenced this particulars actors response. These actors are students and use this productions a springboard to their professional career. I think this actress felt vulnerable and wanted to look her best for agents. Something which is hard to do when you’re playing a character piece.

The dress rehearsal was the first time the costumes were seen alongside the set. Though I had worked closely with the set designer throughout the design stage the two elements are dealt with separately until the technical rehearsal. The synergy between the two design elements worked will. The brighter colours of the costume worked will against the monochrome colour scheme of the set.

The problem scene - Scene 14
This scene continues to be an issue. As the character of Squeal had a few options that the director decided to cop and change until the character had what he felt was appropriate. The 3 other characters in this scene were resolved at the costume parade but the director never really knew what he wanted for this scene for the character of Squeal. Perhaps without a rendered image this was something he struggled to visuals. By the 3rd dress the issues was resolved.

Fittings for Mary Barton

The fittings took place on Monday 2nd July which allowed 2 weeks before the show opened. Again the director decided not to attend the fittings and in attendance was myself as costume designer, the wardrobe supervisor and a wardrobe assistant.

The complexity of the play demands doubling and multiple costume. Though some of this had been considered during the design process the organic nature of this production was that the script was still developing and therefore the doubling and characters were still changing. The fittings offered an opportunity to consider further the quick changes and whether elements of the garments would be able to be underdressed. This task is impossible to do at the design stage as it depends on the individual actors body shapes and the the flexibility of the garment fastenings. The evolving nature of the piece had mean that some of the characters hadn’t been designed for. With this in mind the designs were referred to for the main character costumes but the secondary characters were designed ‘off the rail’ during the fitting. By working with the actors who came with a clear idea of who else they were playing and how long they had to change we started to collate costumes together for the other characters. It was important to make sure the extra costumes suited the overall concept and colour scheme of the piece and did not look out of place. Also that they had the same period cut as depicted in the script. Though most of the costumes were being sourced it was key as the designer that I kept an eye on the overall look of the production to make sure it was still conveying what had been discussed with the director. The supervisor in this nature was very good and provided a variety of options for the actors to try. Considered at this stage was not only whether the costumes fitted and where right for the character but how the clothes would be worn. Though I had studies the character during the design stage of the processes by working with the actors in the fitting I was able to really get a feel of how there characters were developing. This evolving nature is a unique way to work which I enjoy. It makes the fittings a much more creative environment.

Fittings for La Ronde

The fittings for La Ronde took place in the same room as the fittings for Tender. The actors attended individually. In attendance was myself as costume designer, wardrobe supervisor and wardrobe assistant as the fitting room was next to the rehearsal room for La Ronde the director attended ad hoc throughout the day. Because the designs were so specific most aesthetical decisions were made on the actual costume worn by the actor, as apposed to referring to the design throughout the fitting. The designs were out on the side however and referred to at times but a great deal of time had been spent by the supervisor getting the costume prepared for the fittings. As a designer I knew what I wanted the costume to look like.

The actors knew the characters well at this point and could explain how they would perform in the costumes This was helpful from a technical point of view. The play demands a great deal of technical performance from the costumes as the actors take off and put on their costumes during the action. The fittings addressed the technical side as well as the aesthetical.

Some interesting comments were made by the actors for example: ‘I didn’t realise period costume was so heavy’, a fair point as this is not necessarily portrayed in the designs. Similar comments echo that of the Tender fittings such as ‘I feel the part in this outfit’.
The director intermittent attendance was welcomed to reduce any confusion later in the production process. The director was elated and joyous about the costumes being fitted and though some had changed slightly from the designs due to sourcing issues the essence of the design presented to the director had not swayed and at this stage to director was delighted with the results.
One costume which had changed quite a bit from the original design was the costume for the character The Young wife. Though we had looked both at in the ArtsEd store, the National Theatre Hire Departments and Haslemere costume hire we could not find something in the same colour. The timescale and budget would not allow for a costume to be made so we had to consider alternatives. We did find a very similar cut of costume which fitted into the colour scheme for the production. I was pleased with the dress and felt it worked with the concept and the director seems not to be bothered at all. A previous point which I observe here again is during the design process though a designer can take into consideration how the production will be sourced it is impossible to consider all eventualities and a flexible is approach is needed in these situations.

Costume Parade for Tender

The dress parade took place in the rehearsal studio at the end of a long days rehearsals. This was not ideal but was the most appropriate time in the schedule. The purpose of the parade is for the director to see the finished costume a few days before the dress rehearsals so that any changes which needed to be made could be done so with the time allowed. The dress parade for Tender was essential as the director had not seen any of the costumes during the fitting stage and some of the costumes had been sourced without a design to support the choices. I was quite confident that the activity would go well and that for the costumes which had a design that the director would not pleased.

At this stage the designs become redundant and the costumes take over. The director was interested to see every detail including accessories which surprised me as he had taken little interest up until now. A positive response from the director with little surprise on his part which implied the realisation had lifted off the page. Scene 14 raised a few comments as the additional costumes came under scrutiny but none were rejected and the director seemed pleased that the characters where conveyed well through the costumes choices.

Fittings for Tender

The fittings took place in a light and airy room with space for the actors, designer and wardrobe supervisor. The actors attended the fittings individually and the wardrobe supervisor allocated them the selected garments which were source using the designs. Even with the my attendance as costume designer the designs were referred to regularly accuracy: The director had chosen not to attend the fittings but was relying on the realisation on of the costumes looking like the designs shown at the last director/ designer meeting. Secondly the designs were also used to inform the actor how the clothes are to be worn. The director had informed us that he wanted addition costume for scene 14 which had not been discussed at any of the design meetings. The supervisor and myself had had enough time to shop for the additional costume though not image had been generated. Know the characters well help with this process as did the contemporary setting of the play. Together myself and the wardrobe supervisor went out looking for what I though would be appropriate for the character in the scene. Mindful that some of the characters would not have a great deal of time to change I wanted to find items which could be added to the fundamental costume which they were already wearing. I did start to wonder at this point in a contemporary production whether designs are actually needed if I was able to just go out shopping for these additional costumes. I did concluded that the designs which were produced aided a conversation about the characters with the directors and the design which were produced enabled the director to have confidence that the costume which I would source for the additional scene would be suitable.

The actors responded well to the fittings with comments such as ‘my character would definitely wear something like this’ and ‘I feel the part now’. One female actor felt less comfortable in her costume and though it looked very similar to the design which she saw at the presentation on designs felt the realisation of the costume on her body unflattering. She was upset as her character was in her late 40’s and she felt that women in their late 40’s still dress ‘cool’. Struggling with the fact that the character was older than she was she didn’t understand mine or the directors reasoning to make a young person look older you need to place them in older cloths. She left the fitting a little more reassured but resistant to dress her hair in an older style.

Meeting with the costume supervisors

This week has seen individual meetings with the wardrobe supervisors. The meetings involved a more in-depth look at each individual character and what was required for each production. A general observation I made is as a costume designer you need to know what you don’t want to compromise on and what you are happy to be flexible with. For example the character of the sweet young thing in the production of La Ronde has a period blouse which is cream. The blouse itself will need to be sourced as the production budget will not stretch to making it. The style I chose to design shows soft simple lines to echo the personality of the character but as long as it is a period blouse which has the feel of the design it does not matter if it does not match exactly. Additionally a production La Ronde involves actors taking a their costumes off and putting them back on, on stage therefore the functional aspect of the costume at times out weighs the design itself, however, as I made it clear to the wardrobe supervisor, I am keen to get a balance between the practicality and the artistic integrity for all the costumes.

In Tender the key obstacle is that as I have used actual garment images to collage together from various sources to create the final costume design. This causes a problem for the supervisor if the sourcing or the budget restricts what can be bought. Again I felt it key to outline what I felt essential to the artistic integrity of the piece and what I had imagined as a suggestion. In this instance I have asked the supervisor that the top for the character of Tash in scene 1 should be the shape represented on the design and I wanted the dominate colour to be green but the pattern as long as it had a pattern was not essential to replicate actually.

For all the productions colour representation has been an issue but more so in Mary Barton than in the others. I think is it important at this time however to consider the costume budget and therefore the nature of how these productions are being put together. The costume budget for Tender is £500, for La Ronde £800 and for Mary Barton £900. Though small the amount for each production is fair and echos any small production company/ educational production. However the with this in mind the nature of constructing the costumes for these productions will be a combination of sourcing, hiring and making. ArtsEd has a substantial costume store which the wardrobe can use to pull costumes from. In additional the costumes will be brought (Tender) and hired (La Ronde and Mary Barton) from a variety of place. The wardrobe supervisors for both La Ronde and Mary Barton will have the assistance of a wardrobe assistant for alternations any other making will need to be outsourced from the costume budgets for each production therefore construction will be kept limited.

During the design process I was aware of the budgets and understood the nature of the costume gathering therefore the issue of rendering colours was always something which worried me. How could I render the correct colour when I did not know what was available? Did it matter to be accurate or was I merely suggesting an ‘ideal colour if we could get it’. My personality doesn’t allow me to compromise as I feel the integrity of the production my fall and the decisions I made during the design process were for a reason however in small scale production I know it is essential to be flexible. Therefore I think when designing Mary Barton I was aware of these restraints more and the subtle suggestion of colour was a suggestion for the supervisor to follow. With La Ronde I have a different approach and wanted to make clear bold statements of what I wanted and it will be interesting with these 2 approaches which come off the page more accurately.

Presentation of the Designs

Presentation of the Final Designs took place on the 6th June at the Arts Educational School. The meetings were spaced throughout the day. Tender at 10.30, La Ronde at 11.30 and Mary Barton at 12.30.

Attending each presentation was the director, the cast, the set designer, the wardrobe supervisor, the production manager and myself as costume designer. The meetings took place in the assigned rehearsal rooms for each production.

The aim of the presentation was to communicate as clearly as possible what the actors would be wearing to aid them to understand and consider during rehearsal what their character would look like.

Tender
This meeting was formal but relaxed. The room was set with a group of chairs in a circle with us all gathered around. The meeting started with an introduction from the cast and crew. The set box was placed on a table in the centre of the group and was discussed first. The actors asked questions and both the set designer and director answered any issue which arose. The presentation of the costumes followed. The designs which had been printed on A3 were large enough for the entire group to see. (7 cast member, 1 director and 4 crew). I chose not to place the designs on the table but to perch them in front of me on my knee whist sitting down. This informal approach seemed appropriate to the situation and I felt confident in that position to present the designs to the actors. The tone of the presentation was directed toward the actors though it is helpful for the wardrobe supervisor to hear what I had to say about the designs I had already planned to meet her after the presentation to discuss the costumes in more detail. The designs seemed to be reserved well. Some giggles came from the cast when I presented the costume design for Squeal as they felt it amusing that he would be wearing a pink dressing gown and commented on the size of his a legs. I felt the reaction was affectionate apposed to mocking of the designs at this time. The director was quite active during the presentation adding ideas and additional items of costume which had not been discussed before. Though I was willing to comply I felt that it was unprofessional at this stage. However it has highlighted that perhaps these things were not discussed or observed at the last meeting. Prior to the presentation I had sent the designs off to the director to look at but he informed me on the day that he had not been able to access them because of a technical problem. At the end of the presentation I offered the director the option to keep a copy of the designs. I had printed them out in both A3 and A4 format. He chose the A4 format and I had a feeling at that point they were put in his folder never to be looked at again.

La Ronde

This meeting took place in a similar format. The presentation was formal but relaxed. The chairs were set in a circle and the actors had full view of the designs. Interestingly the director in this instance had already presented the set design and therefore the design presentation focused directly on costume. There was a strong buzz in the room and it seemed that the director had hyped up the actors ready to receive the presentation. The designs were received a great response. The actors seemed excited and keen to see what they would be wearing. The director of La Ronde chose to not input into the presentation but merely supported my descriptions of the costumes and how I thought they would help communicate character. It was hard not to over focus the my explanation of the costumes by talking about the characterisation as this was the job of the director and I not want to over step the mark.

I offered the director and cast at this meeting a print out of the designs as they pleasingly took the A3 versions which they commented would be put on their inspiration board to support their rehearsal and character development.

Mary Barton

This presentation was very different as a rehearsal was taking place as we entered the room. Once the actors had stopped their activity a table was pulled into the centre of the room for the set box to be placed on. This meeting was very informal almost too informal. The director gathered the cast of 13 together who chose to just bunch around the table. The director at this stage stepped away and it was hard for the rest of the crew to get a clear view of the set box while it was being presented. My presentation of the costume designs took a similar format. I placed the designs on the table with actors huddled around. This style of presenting did throw me and I felt it the least professional presentation of the day. As I went though each character the actors did seem hooked and asked questions when they felt they needed to.

Overall observation:

When talking about a character I tried in all presentation to focus the discussion on the actor who would be performing in the costume. I felt is essential to not only engage with them as actors but use the presentation as a means to start establishing a relationship with the individual actors. Interestingly 2 actors’ from Mary Barton after the presentation did choose to talk to the director about a few minor issues which they had about their costume which obviously demonstrates that they did not feel they could talk to me yet. The issues were easily resolved when the director asked me to join the conversation.

The presentations are just a starting point for the actors to engage with the play visually, this helps them contextualise the work they are doing with the environment that they will be performing in, including the clothes they will wear. It is also the first interaction the actors have with the production team and where the relationship starts too established between the technical and performance side of the production.

Post Production meeting with Wardrobe.

This meeting took place is a quiet office away from the rehearsal studios. The meeting consisted of myself and the 3 supervisors who would be working on each show. At the meeting I gave the three supervisors a folder containing copies of the costume designs with fabric samples (were necessary). The folder which was A4 contained printed versions of the A3 designs presented at the meeting that morning. I had not attached presented a sample of the fabric at the morning presentation as I felt it was more relevant for the supervisors to have a sample and I had already shown the fabric to the directors at the design meetings. I briefly went through each production and we discussed options on which designs would be hired and made. Also as I was working with 3 supervisors it was essential that I established a timetable with them therefore being available when I was needed. This initial meeting focused mainly on logistics apposed to aesthetics.

On reflection I should have meet the supervisors separately as the discussion only skimmed the surface however the timeframe was good to discuss in a group situation.

Final design meeting - Tender

Preparation for the meeting

For the meeting I had prepared a screen based Pdf presentation. Though in the meeting with the director from Mary Barton and La Ronde meetings I had shown screen based mood boards in support of the designs, both other directors had viewed the development designs in a printed format. In addition the designs shown at this meeting were not in progress but the intended final designs. That is not to say that the designs were not flexible with the pending deadline looming I wanted to present designs as near to finish as possible. Also I prepared thumbnails of the designs which showed all the designs on one page. This sheet I had printed in hard copy to give to the director at the end of the meeting.


The meeting

The meeting started as usual of a discussion about the set first. This put the production in context and aided the director to visualise the set with the costume. Following the discussion on set I presented the costume designs to the director on a screen presentation. The meeting was held in the MA Acting production room which is a busy room with other directors, acting tutors and administration staff were busily getting on with there daily duties. Unfortunately the discussion about costume was constantly interrupted by other people in the room as the director lost concentration and started conversation with passers by. This observation made me consider the how highly the directors value the costume design and I will use this to inform one of the questions which I intend to ask the directors in a post production interview importance that directors put on costume. But also I should also consider whether the mode of presentation could have influence his reaction and perhaps he found it hard to engage with the on screen images. The director, when focused, took his time to considerer each design which highlighted a problem with on screen presentations. The computer screen kept turning off. This had not happened in other presentation felt slightly unprofessional. I should have preset the power schemes in the power option on the computer to longer than the current setting of 5 minutes. It is, however a key indicator for the length that some of the discussions took over one design. I had sent the director a comprehensive costume plot via email, this costume plot was heavily used in the discussion to understand which costume would be worn when. I did consider during the meeting whether the director had almost too much information which made him ponder unnecessarily small things at times. However reflecting on my previous observation about reading the directors personality, I think the director for Tender is a control freak therefore the more information you give him the more he wants to dissect it and question. I do feel this approach had its advantages as hopefully it will eradicate any misunderstandings later in the production process.

The reaction to the designs was positive, with only a few minor changes. The clear representation of the costumes left little to the imagination. I was please to see that the designs worked in the way I had intended. At the end of the meeting I presented the director with thumbnails which he was able to take away. I had intended the thumbnails to generate a discussion about the entire look of the costumes and the production as a whole; however the director at this point seemed happy with the decision and just filled the thumbnail images with the rest of his work and the meeting finished. As this is the last meeting with the director before the presentation of the designs to the actors, I wanted to identify key areas to look forward to as the production develops and the costumes designs translate in to 3D costume. For the production of Tender my key interest is 1. To look at whether all the in depth pre production work and attention to detail will produce less issues later in the build process. 2. It will be interesting to observe whether the wardrobe supervisor will find the designs as clear and easy to use or almost too restrictive as the design decisions are so clear cut and most of the costumes will be brought from high street shops. Will the wardrobe supervisor be able to get the same garments which I chose from magazines and clothing catalogues? 3. What reactions will the actors have to the designs? Will they find them helpful to understand there character?

Tender a week in the studio

With 2 director/ designer meeting out of the way it has been an intense week getting the designs for Tender ready for a meeting with the Director on Friday 25th. The intended style for this production was ‘photorealistic’. Developing on from the concept boards which were created for the first meeting I continued to use collage as a main type for rendering technique. In my personal experience Photoshop is a really good tool for creating digital collaged pieces. Editing, rescaling and forming the image are key functions of the programme. My intention however was not to just to create a collage which looked like a photo but to add an artistic, stylistic quality to the designs. I also looked at designers work such as Paul Brown and Claire Lyth for inspiration. They use detailed face which add realism to the image but do not pull focus. Reading the directors personality traits, I observed in the first meeting that he required his designers to put in ‘the work’ for his production. Though a modern piece he made it quite clear that it would still require just as much work as a period piece. Though this may be the case during the design process the gathering of the actual costumes should be much less labour intensive. My feeling is that this attitude stems from the arrangements that one costume designer (myself) is working on 3 shows for the same company. He wants reassurance that he is getting his fair share of me. From this observation I formed the opinion that I would need to demonstrate artistically that I had put the ‘work’ in. One of my early observations I encountered from talking to an experienced costume maker is that if a designer has slaved over a design that there is a sense that the design has more passion emotion and work gone into the design development process. I have been aware of this and keen not to let the computer to be seen as the easy option.

With all this in mind I wanted to create a collage look which looked stylistic, creative and ‘worked’ and not as collage can often look like a real photo. For this I looked at designers work such as Paul Brown and Claire Lyth for inspiration. They use detailed face which adds realism to the image without pulling focus always from the costume but almost highlighting the costume more. To create the images I used magazines and clothing catalogues. Being a contemporary production my research into the characters and their clothing evolved around modern fashion. Looking at magazines and clothing catalogues became a key source of inspiration and using collage allowed me to dress the characters as if I were shopping. I chose to put a effect on the face which involves a number of steps using filter and channels in Photoshop.

Evaluation the work produced this week I am confident to say the techniques has been effective and productive. The collage technique did not consume a large deal of time however this process benefited from the fact that the ‘design development’ process had taken place and most of the images were pre collected. My studio practice which formed almost a rhythmic pattern followed a process of selecting an image, extracting it and putting th costume together in a collage. A real advantage which I used on several occasions was the process of turning off layers and adding an alternative item of clothing for the next scene while retaining the face, trousers or shoes from the image before. This process almost echo’s my practice on from the rendering style used for La Ronde, where the same image can look different with a few simple changes. I created a temple for the final design layout and chose to put the costume changes for each character on the same page. What I learnt for my studio practice is how much can be achieved by using the same process and almost getting a systematic rhythm to rendering. In 15 hours I was able to produce 20 designs ready for discussion. Perhaps I achieved this just because it had to be done. However at the beginning of the week I had decided I would get done what I could in the time frame but was please I was able to produce all that I did. I think as a negative that using this system you get into a ‘zone’ which almost reflects a factory production line and in that instance a sense of artistry goes from your work.

What does it all mean?

Well I suppose this week I have continued to learn that the computer aids my time managements and I have benefited from this by being able to produce a great deal of work. Time does seem to be a key pro of using a computer but I also see artistic developments which I have made.

The technique and style of the renderings has been artistically successful from my view point. Though collage is essentially the gathering of images from other sources collated together to make a new image I feel I have added a unique and creative look to the final renderings. The use of solid flat images of the clothes next to the stylized pencil effect of the body not only pulls focus on the essential component (the costume) but gives the image a creative quality which I hope give it artistic merit. The most rewarding element of this method of working is the realistic representation of the clothes which you are trying to communicate. A designer who struggles to draw well could use this technique as it requires no drawing. It does however require a high level of knowledge into the computer programme as the technique though simple in results required a variety of applications.

Director/ Designer Meeting La Ronde/ Mary Barton

The design team met the Director for Mary Barton at 12.00 and La Ronde at 1.30. Both meetings started as usual discussing the set design. Obviously some costume queries evolved out of such discussions this often helps put the production in context and makes it easier to visualise how the costumes will look on stage. Have such a short preparation time for the meetings I had to decide what I would show and how realistically manageable the work I would do for each director.

For Mary Bartons I presented a combination of digital printed sketches and some reference material in the form of photos and photocopies, all presented in a sketchbook. I also presented the director 2 on screen mood boards.

For La Ronde I have prepared digital mood boards for each character, and had printed off the digitally manipulated, hand-drawn line drawings which had a suggestion of colour and pattern by hand rendered coloured pencil.

The practical outcome of both meetings are recorded in more detail in my production notes but the focus of my reflections are to support my research question

I observed the following in response to my research question:

The more I work with the three different directors at the same time I am realising that whatever you present to them and whatever the ideas are that you suggest you need to treat them all differently. Reading the directors personality and responding to their reaction accordingly helps when developing a relationship. The director for Mary Barton works very organically. As the script is still developing and probably will continue to do so during the rehearsal period he is open to ideas but also thrives on how creativity and concepts can evolve. In images which I have presented to him I have purposely tried to evoke a strong sense of atmosphere in them. Detail was left to the imagination which allowed for different interpretation and creative dialogue. The only danger in that, which I can foresee is that the actual costumes, may not capture the atmospheric quality of the painterly designs. The director did admire the quality of the drawings and commented on them. I am not sure at this point if he knows whether they are rendered on the computer or even if he cares.

The director for La Ronde could not be more different. Her approach is to map every step of ever scene out. Responding to her personality I knew the designs would need to be precise, very clear and detailed and accurate to the period. In her meeting I presented the line drawings in a sketchbook accompanied by individual ‘on screen’ mood board with historical references for each character. Her response was positive the character boards on screen allowed her to see the design choices and where the ideas had stemmed from. Though this could have been done is a sketchbook. I felt the digital presentation gave an added air of professionalism. I gave the director a copy of the character boards which she can use as she continues to plot out the play. She was very thankful to receive them at the end of the meeting.

The reaction to the computer and on screen presentations has so far been ‘normal’. What I mean by this is none of the directors have reacted negatively towards them. Nor have they been overly positive. I sense that they see it as just an accessory to the meetings.

I have not yet mentioned my MA research topic as I do not want it to influence the way I am seen. However I am establishing good relationships and presently see no reason why the research should be a problem. The director of La Ronde is a woman in her 50s and who is a self confessed computer novice. She commented at the end of the meeting when discussing sending some designs via email that she doesn’t know much about computers. On commenting that this will help her learn, she said pleasingly that it was a great opportunity to get her head around the technology.

Other than my sketchbooks and the Laptop I haven’t taken any other books or reference materials to the meetings. I have not once felt I did not have an image to discuss nor that what I had already saved on my computer insufficient for the conversations.

As this will be the last meeting with the directors of La Ronde and Mary Barton before the presentation of the designs to the actors, I wanted to identify key areas to look forward to as the production develops and the costumes designs translate in to 3D costume.

For the production of La Ronde my key area of interest is (1) whether the designs will communicate clearly the entire costume to the wardrobe supervisor. The show is very reliant on costume as in the action which takes place is of the actors un dressing and dressing on stage. Will the designs have enough information in them for the supervisor to understand what is required? (2) Considering the budget restricts, I wonder how many things will be made, therefore will the design be supportive when going to hire places to find costumes? (3) What reactions will the actors have to the designs? Will they find them helpful to understand their character?

For the Production of Mary Barton the director wants the design to evolve as the rehearsals progress. So (1) will the designs which are produced before this evolutional process be supportive to the wardrobe supervisor as the design develops. (2) Does the costume designs support the evolving script and add atmosphere to the rehearsal process. (3) How effectively will the doubling work and has this been clearly communicated in my designs? (4)In such an organic process is a design necessary? (5) Has the combination of designs and photographic images worked will together to communicate a whole production look?

Working on La Ronde

The last 6 days (33 hours) have been spent focusing my studio work on the production La Ronde. My aim for the week was to design in principle all the characters ready for the next designer/ director meeting on the 18th May. My personal deadline was planned the 11th May as I would need to spend the rest of the time before the next meeting working on Mary Barton as I would also meet the director for that production on the same day. With a tight schedule I planned to spend 2 days drawing the basic outlines for each character and then designing the costumes over the next 4 days. For this production I am looking at creating a caricature style therefore the emphasis on faces and poses is essential to communicate character. Also an important observation which I have realised working with 3 different directors is that they all visually need different things to help them understand the concepts offered to them by me. The director for La Ronde is particular about detail and her key focus is on getting the correct period look. She has a keen interest in costume and wants to know all aspects of the costume including the underwear. As the focus of the play is about sex and most scenes consist of the characters undressing or at least exposing their underwear I completely understand her concerns and focus. Therefore when working I took into consideration her needs and designed in the style accordingly creating a style which I will know call detail/ caricature. I chose therefore to make the line drawings and final designs clear and very detailed but still retain a characterful drawings style. Using the research on Austrian/ Hungarian Artists I can observe styles of artists such a Mucha and see a relation in the style I want to create for my research and an appropriate style for the influences of the production. His theatrical images and character based art is detailed, refines and bold.

The technique I used for creating the illustrations was not new to me as I had used the technique when designing a dance production in 2006. The processes involved a series of hand-drawn line drawing of the body, face and sometimes the hands, which are drawn on separate sheets. I choose to hand-draw in this way as my drawing ability can sometimes be hindered by drawing in restricted sizes. For example I draw better proportioned and detailed faces at a much more affiant pace if I can draw them large. The proportion of the bodies are drawn on A4 sheets and sometimes when I am struggling with a particular aspect of a pose (e.g the angle of an arm, foot) I take the option of tracing from an existing image. Once I have completed the drawings I scan them into the computer for rescaling and positioning together, finally creating a whole body. Though at this point my focus is not on the costumes, this process is not alien to the actual ‘design’ process as while forming these line drawings I am constantly considering character, looking at reference images and forming an idea of what the final costume may look like.
The next step of the process is to print out the line drawings several times and start to design the clothes which will be worn. The advantage of this is that multiple options can be tried without starting again each time. From time to time when the pose is not appropriate to communicate the garment, I will draw for example a differently posed arm or leg. Once the drawings are formed

Designer/ Director Conference 1 - Observation and reflection

The meetings took place at Arts Educational Schools in Chiswick, London. Spanning the whole day, the meetings were arranged for 11am with the director for Tender, at 2pm with the director for La Ronde and at 4pm with the director for Mary Barton. I had prepared visual references for all the meetings.

For Tender I produced an 8 page PDF presentation. This consisted of 1 concept board which had inspirational images from artists and photographers and 7 character mood boards. The pages consisted of collaged images and scanned hand rendered line drawings collated in Photoshop and saved as a PDF presentation.

For La Ronde I also prepared a PDF presentation. This consisted of 4 pages mainly containing historical reference material and influences from artist. At this early stage I chose not to create mood boards for each character but generate general discussion about the production.

Mary Barton’s preparation was very different. Only receiving the script a few days before the meeting I had already informed the director that I would not have many images for the meeting. Because of time restrictions I was unable to present the images I had researched in a PDF presentation format and used hand held images spread on the table. Though I had planned to have a similar style of presentation for all the director/ designer meetings I decided this different approach would be interesting to record and monitor.

I chose not to digitally record the meetings as I felt it inappropriate at this early stage in the research and wanted to develop as relationship with the directors as a designer apposed to a researcher. Also with each meeting lasting 2 hours I felt it more feasible to record the meetings in note form

Responding to my research question I observed the following:

Tender: The first part of the meeting consisted of a discussion about the set design. The director’s interest and enthusiasm to keep the concept hyper contemporary was made clear. When presenting the costume mood boards I asked the designer whether he minded seeing the images on screen. I had prepared printed images in case the location or response from the director did not enabled me to show my ideas on screen. With a positive response to this suggestion I started the presentation. Moving through each page I felt nervous and initially I was unable to read his reactions. The computer images did support my verbal presentation and I felt more confident as I moved through each page. The director did not say much throughout the presentation taking the time, I think, to consider my ideas. Once the discussion started to unfold I was able to flip back through the pages to discuss the individual character in more detail. His comments varied from ‘I like that image’ and ‘that goes will together’ to ‘that’s exactly what she should wear’. I was please with these comments as it has always been my hope that by using this photo/realistic technique the director would easily be able to visualise the costume on the actor. I felt a success in the functionality of the PDF presentation. I felt it added a professionalism to the meeting as the director seemed impressed with what I had prepared and an air of confidence seemed to develop between us. At the end of the meeting I was able to give the director print-outs of our discussion. This again, I think, added to a professional relationship that has started to be formed.

La Ronde

The meeting unfolded in a similar way and the set was discussed before the costumes. Again I asked the director if she minded seeing the visual images I had prepared on screen. She was elated with this thought and I felt instant respect from her. This filled me with confidence and helped me adopt a confident tone when presenting my ideas. Though I only resented 4 pages she responded well to the mood boards and was able to quickly understand my thoughts. The last page showed an image of a corset which I had overlaid with a Klimt design to suggest fabric decoration which may be developed. She did not want to further develop this idea which I fully respected as that is the role of a director, to direct the overall vision of the production. As I knew the idea was rather radical I was pleased that it took little effort to create the image. I was able to visually demonstrate an idea which, is as in this case was dismissed, I did not feel a great deal of time had been wasted but an ideas was aired.

During the meeting the conversation moved away from the presentation and focused on individual characters in the production. I had not taken any hard copy references with me but was able to quickly find an image to support the conversation in my research files stored on my computer. Throughout this presentation I felt confident and very prepared. I gave the printed image pages to the director to take away for her further consideration however after the discussion about the Klimt influenced fabric I chose to remove the ideas page supporting this.

I felt the simple layout of the pages and the Art Nouveau boarder gave a suggestion of style without to much visual clutter. I felt that this suited the director well.

Mary Barton

As I had not prepared a screen presentation for the meeting I relied on photocopies and images from books. The director was very open to creative input by both myself and the set designer. My personal response to this meeting was not as positive to the last two. Though the meeting went well and the outcome was constructive I felt my personal participation was less dynamic. Not preparing a presentation meant that I did not feel as confident or as focused on what I wanted to talk about as I had done in the last 2 presentations. I did observe that the costumes were discussed alongside the set rather than reserved for the second part of the meeting. It is unclear if this was the nature of the design concept which relies heavily of textiles and draped clothes or the fact that the costume reference material was spread out on the table but the combined discussion in this instance was a more holistic approach. As I had not prepared a presentation I was unable to leave the director with any images to go away with. Though this seem perfectly expectable I felt, some how that the director would not be able to reflect on the discussion and have visual references outside of the meeting. He did seem however pleased with the developments and quiet assured that the ideas generated by both myself and the set designer was going in the right direction.

In conclusion: Observing my personal response to the 3 meetings I have noted that for me the screen presentations help me feel more prepared and present a more professional persona. I did not feel the results of the discussions were skewed by whether a presentation was presented on screen but my personal confidence and sense of preparation was affected. As a competent computer user the photocopies felt messy laid out of the table, not very clear and I was a little unsure what they showed, when. As teacher I often use screen presentation to formulise my thinking and communicate a coherent thought process. As a costume designer the mood boards collated ideas and vision in an accessible way. The first 2 directors were able to take away the presentation for them to further reflect on my thoughts and ideas. I hope this will support the design development process and will in time reduce any surprises later in the production process.

Getting Started on La Ronde

An initial telephone conversation with the director of La Ronde started the creative process for this production. Her concept for the production is to focus on the class system in Vienna at the time and really place the play visually into accurate period costume. Though, of course, my role as costume designer is to be directed, I am slightly disappointed as I was keen to really explore more conceptual ideas with this production. My intention for the week was to gather research for La Ronde in a similar mode to Tender and create visual concept boards for the initial meeting to be held on the 2nd May.

In the concept boards I have brought together some of the visual research which I have collated as an initial response to the script. Firstly focusing on Austrian/Hungarian artists of the time I have looked at artists such as Klimt, Moser and the Mucha. Analysing their styles I have observed the graphic look the art work has. I have scrutinized the unique qualities of Art Nouveau style illustrations. The thick outlines and solid flat bold colours are similar to modern graphic style drawings. In addition I observed the type style has a distinct form which I hope to recreate through CAD. Designers are often influence by artists to inspire the concept or feel of the design. In this instance I hope to use the Art Nouveau style to inform the both design process and rendering style while still being mindful of the caricature style designs I initially intended to create.

The concept boards were more formulaic than Tender. I used an Art Nouveau style border and regimented image placing to create a slick look. This I felt appropriate not only to clearly communicate visually my intentions but also sensing the type of person the director is it felt appropriate to make sure the work has clarity and read easily.

The results of this weeks’ studio work is yet to be tested in a director/ designer conference however I can reflect on the process and application of the work.

The process involved using a series of layer to place the images. Resizing the images and placing them in position was relatively simple. This form of image collating which is not overly time consuming seemed appropriate for it required function. I chose again to photograph the images rather than scanning them in. Last week the process was not that successful, however I am please to report that this attempt worked much more effectively. Firstly I took a little more consideration when taking the photograph. Secondarily the quantity of the images I took photo of were of a much better quality. The images which I took for the mood boards for Tender were mainly from magazines and this affected the quality of the photograph this week the images were from full colour art books. In conclusion this method has been successful in this context. The process of recording images is quick and then to transform them into a Photoshop image is quite simply achieved.

The digtial sketchbook pages which I have create are just the beginning of a visual discussion between the director and the costume designer.

Tender - Moodboards

This week has been a crazy week. As well as my full time job I have worked 24 hours on Tender. My progress has been good and I feel on schedule. I chose to focus on Tender as it was the play I know the most about. Having analysed the script and character the week before, I spent this week gathering images and creating montage digital sketchbook pages for each character. I have found in the past that a collection of visuals collated together on one sheet enables the first discussion with the director to be focused and direct. I collected images from magazines, catalogues and through personal observation sketches. This contemporary piece lends itself to this style of montage. The process of editing and arranging images on the page using exclusively Adobe Photoshop has been productive and the pace has been steady. I have chosen to style the pages with ripped edge effects to echo the plays ‘snip it’ of life scene structure this follows on from using ideas established at the meeting with the set designer. I started by creating a bank of scanned ripped pieces of paper which I used to place the images on. I have learnt a quick and effective technique to do this.

(Place the ripped layer below the image. Hovering over the centre point between the two layer in the layer pallet click ALT and a black circular icon with and arrow on it appears. The layer above is now places over the ripped layer and will only show the image with in the shape of the ripped paper below.)

This process has made presenting the images on a page a quick and affiant method. I have also created a basic template which I have used for each page rather than starting from a blank sheet. By just moving the basic images (text, ripped edges and background) around I was able to create a different look for each character.
The use of gray scaling an image has been effective as monochrome is a mayor feature of my concept.
Instead of scanning in ever image I decided to take digital photographs. This process was quick and by just plugging in the camera to the PC the images were instantly on my computer. The results were fair but for a great deal of images the quality was not good enough and I had to scan them in as well adding additional time to the process. Taking a photograph of a magazine page does not create the best quality picture and correcting this mistake added a great deal of time to my workload.

I feel I have had a creative approach to my work this week and the computer assisted in this by opening up opportunities which may not have been possible without it. My approach as not been formulaic and I have been keen to see what the computer could do. Enjoying the happy accident I was able to stumble across the ripped paper effects has added to the stylish look which I intended. Creating mood board with clear communication, atmospheric style and a visual springboard for discussion was my aim. Not having a strict idea what the pages would look like has been part of the successes.

painterly/ atmospheric

Mary Barton is adapted from the classical novel by Elizabeth Gaskill. This production set in the1840’s is centred around working class characters in Manchester society. I have chosen to render the designs for this production in a painterly/ atmospheric style to reflect the moody, period feel of the piece. Designers with such artistry such as David Collis use a beautiful combination of tone and shadow to create mood evoking designs. International award winning costume designer, Ann Roth, also adopts a mood capturing approach. Though not as detailed as David Collis, Roth’s scribbled lines, and suggestive marks suggest a great sense of atmosphere. Though traditionally considered that this style of rendering could only be achieved by hand rendered methods more designers are creating effective results using the computers. Nic Ularu who uses a combination of computer and hand techniques points out ‘To preserve the “handmade” feeling of rendering, I normally print on paper with texture and thickness, such as watercolor or drawing paper’ (Ularu 1999). Other designers such as Betty Poindexter and Martin Morley also create their painterly style with the aid of computers. I hope by choosing this style of rendering I will be able to push my hand drawing and technical skills by combing both traditional and digital methods.

Characterful

La Ronde, set in turn-of-the-century Vienna is about the façade of seduction and sexual games played out by couples. The character lead production is full of stereotypes and pulls focus on the individual character’s agendas and personalities. With an emphasis on larger than life characters I intend to render this production with a characterful style. Hauixiang (2004 pg vii) states: ‘…the characters body language reflects the soul and spirit of the character, and an interesting gesture helps display the style of the costume’. Costume designers such as Lez Brotherson, Anne Curry and Nancy Surman have effectively used this expressive style of drawing for some time. Brotherson in particular is know to use one fundamental trademark body shape which he adapts. With the slight change of gestures and expressions he transforms these templates from female temptress to innocent boy. Common features of this caricature style of drawing are big faces with large than life expressions and animated poses with bold well defined lines. ‘Directors and actors find faces helpful in the depiction of character’ (Curry 2006). This style lends it self to La Ronde comic, outrageous themes and character lead script.