Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/933762
THE ARTISAN WINTER 2018 • 57 Early in 2017, I was contacted by Catherine Zeta-Jones to design and apply the make-up for an upcoming project she was doing called Cocaine Godmother, the story of Griselda Blanco, a notorious drug dealer from Colombia. Catherine wanted to completely discard her glamorous image and, in her words, "go for it." I proposed completely stripping all artifice away from Catherine and emphasized what few flaws existed. From my research, I found that Griselda ended her reign as a recluse in her native Colombia, having lived an unbe- lievably lavish lifestyle in Miami. The character's look was broken down into SIX MAIN STAGES with subtle transition points in-between. STAGE ONE, YOUNG GRISELDA: I basically concealed every flaw on the face and highlighted the complete area around her eyes and mouth. I used a very fine mascara, tinted Chapstick and very soft grey eyeshadow. I placed gentle cream blusher (Stila "Poppy ") low down on the apple of her cheeks which was left unpowdered. All this was done to achieve a youthful look and helped keep the light flat and soft on her face. STAGE TWO, MATURE GRISELDA: I removed the highlighter around the eyes, and blusher was placed directly under the cheekbone. The eyes were lined with black pencil (Christian Dior Intense Black) and a thicker mascara and stronger lip color were used. STAGE THREE, WEALTHY GRISELDA: This was an extremely fun phase to do. The character was renowned for her bad taste and, being that it was Miami in the '70s … say no more. A heavier foundation was used but hardly any con- cealer used under the eyes. Intense messy eyeshadows were heavily applied, coats of mascara. Thick black eyeliner, heavy blusher and as much lip gloss as I could get on. This was also the time that she became a major coke addict, so small amounts of red eyeliner were placed inside her eyes and inside her nostrils. STAGE FOUR, THE DOWNWARD SLOPE: I basically used a very light foundation having first started to paint sunspots and broken veins on the character's face— no concealer and no highlighter under the eyes. The redness in-and-around the eyes was intensified and cold lip colors were used. STAGE FIVE, PRISON: This was the start of the final three phases. The finest amount of pale foundation was applied. I again went in and painted damage on the skin under the base. No mascara, just redness around the eyes and shading to emphasize bags under the eyes. A small amount of stipple was used under and around the eyes. No lipstick was used and the foundation was carried over the lip. STAGE FIVE, RELEASE FROM PRISON: No foundation was used. I emphasized the damage and veins I had done before. I increased the stipple around her eyes and also applied some to the corners of her mouth. A small wattle piece was applied under her chin and down her throat; the backs of her hands were aged and stippled. Prosthetic pieces made by Bill Terezakis and I was assisted by Vicki Syskakis, both from Vancouver, where the film was shot. STAGE SIX, THE RECLUSE: At this stage, Griselda had been living for years in total seclusion. I applied a bald cap which was repainted to speed up the process. I radically emphasized all the flaws in her forehead area, especially the sides—to make her face narrower. Her upper and lower eyes were heavily stippled. I applied nasolabial folds and all faults and damage on her skin were radically emphasized. I used various Kryolan pencils blended down with 99 percent IPA so I could get the intensity of the color I love without it drying too quickly. She was especially known for her love of sunbathing and the heavy sun damage was shown, a com- plete neck and wattle was applied going completely down to her décolletage. Her eyelashes were greyed down, as well as her eyebrows. The whole make-up was then given a final of PPI Rice Paper. A small amount of menthol was blown into her eyes to make them slightly watery. The director of photography lit her extremely harshly (from above) to emphasize the damage and aging. •