Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1486000
THE ARTISAN WINTER 2023 • 29 TRK: After some brainstorming and the realization that midday wig changes could happen often, we agreed there was really only one solution, custom silicone prosthetics transfers. Cut to Stephen Prouty from Fusion FX. Stephen provided all the pieces needed for the run of the shoot. These pieces not only gave a more translucent "skin" look but would survive the difficult days ahead. JLM: This also meant it would be a nicer surface for the lace and we didn't have to encapsulate Ana's entire head in a full bald cap. The difference of applying her light blonde wigs onto a blank scalp canvas, as opposed to laying it over her own dark hairline, really made all the difference. I wouldn't have wanted to do it any other way. TRK: With the technical part out of the way, we started the process we now call, "Finding our Marilyn." Andrew's advice was not simply to apply Marilyn's make-up to Ana, but to transform Ana into Marilyn. As much as that seems simple, it freed me up to experiment, within reason. After bleaching and minimizing Ana's brows, I then focused on the more obvious challenge, a transformation. As I was just getting to know Ana's face and also Marilyn's, I worked on how best to contour and highlight Ana's face and eyes to merge their features. This took me a few tries. We started with the most familiar 1950s Marilyn, getting that right would inform everything else, both younger and older. The final products were AbOvo Delicate Day under a little Clé de Peau foundation with Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Flawless Filter to recreate the reflective look of vaseline that Marilyn often used. Make Up For Ever handpicked eye shadows with lots of in- dividual lashes by LashLash (formally Mari Shten). The lip colors were endless but a few were Charlotte Tilbury's "Pillow Talk" & Julie Hewett's "Celeste" for neutrals. Tilbury's "So Marilyn," Too Faced "Stiletto Red" & Bésame's "Red Hot Red" were a few of the classic reds. Coral included MAC "Tropic Tonic," Tilbury's "Hot Emily" & Guerlain's KissKiss "Orange Fizz." The Seven Year Itch lip color was Tilbury's "Tell Laura" with a bit of Hewett's "Belle Noir." Niagara lip color was Guerlain's KissKiss "Daring Pink" with cherry almond lip balm by Montana Emu Ranch. JLM: I worked closely with Andrew to sort out the best way to recre- ate as many of these iconic looks as possible with the limited wigs. We would be catching a glimpse of brunette and golden blonde of young Norma Jeane. Rob Pickens from Wigmaker Associates customized two store-bought wigs by re-fronting to match Norma Jeane's hair- line. I then trimmed, adjusted color, set and styled both. We recreated the iconic images from the 1950s most often. I had two creamy blonde custom-made wigs, one shorter and one longer. These were ventilated with the same varying shades of blonde, same density and made to mimic her own natural texture. This gave me a similar base to work from when styling. Rob and I worked closely to recreate Norma Jeane's specific hairline, including the widow's peak. Mohair was used to create the fine baby hairs around her hairline. After my first fitting with Ana, seeing the wig with the full make-up, I then added more of a root shadow and fine lowlights to help give more di- mension. With these two wigs, I had to push and pull them to match various lengths, colors and styles. This was a definite challenge. TRK & JLM: When we finally brought together her legendary look, it was emotional for all of us. With no time to savour the moment, we started to map out many years in this well-documented life. There was very little time to accomplish the mountain of looks in both color and B&W. We crossed our fingers and charged through about 36 famous looks on the first preproduction photo shoot days to use as props. These would help show Marilyn's path to fame. Many of these looks we were doing for the first and last time. But we still had the rest of the cast to sort out. JLM: We always talk about the lack of time and money, but I have never been in a position, before or since, that required me to ignore continuity and NOT do a wig change because "We do not have time," even though, with my key Lynnae, we could do the wig