Warning; Hunger Games Spoiler Alert!!!
I love the Hunger Games and have read the trilogy twice and seen all the films out so far, so I thought this would be a great subject to base my project on. I decided to base my project on the lullaby in the series, specifically in the context of the epilogue of the 3rd book, which is set in the meadow on the edge of district 12, where the main characters Katniss and Peeta live. In the 20 years since the rebellion Katniss and Peeta have rebuilt their lives in district 12, though still have to live with the nightmares and flashbacks from the games. After the rebellion the people of the district that were killed were buried in the meadow in a mass grave, and without any help the meadow re-grew over the grave and bloomed. Now Katniss’ children play on the meadow unaware of the death just under their feet and the new connotation of the lullaby she sings to them. The costume and set I have made are a visualisation of the lullaby in the context of the epilogue, showing the literal setting but also hinting at the feelings of the characters.
I love the Hunger Games and have read the trilogy twice and seen all the films out so far, so I thought this would be a great subject to base my project on. I decided to base my project on the lullaby in the series, specifically in the context of the epilogue of the 3rd book, which is set in the meadow on the edge of district 12, where the main characters Katniss and Peeta live. In the 20 years since the rebellion Katniss and Peeta have rebuilt their lives in district 12, though still have to live with the nightmares and flashbacks from the games. After the rebellion the people of the district that were killed were buried in the meadow in a mass grave, and without any help the meadow re-grew over the grave and bloomed. Now Katniss’ children play on the meadow unaware of the death just under their feet and the new connotation of the lullaby she sings to them. The costume and set I have made are a visualisation of the lullaby in the context of the epilogue, showing the literal setting but also hinting at the feelings of the characters.
Costume.
The costume is a visual representation of the meadow, consisting of a lined cotton bodice and underskirt with a corset lace up back and two over-skirts showing the two layers of the meadow, the nature on top and the graves underneath. These two layers also symbolize Katniss and Peeta's life now; the nature layer symbolizes Katniss and Peeta's new life with their kids and how they have regrown after being torn apart by the ordeals they faced in the games, while the grave layer underneath symbolizes how even though they have moved on the trauma of their experiences is always there etched into their memories, causing violent flashbacks and nightmares.
I used a high-low skirt for these layers to show the flowing meadow. I used chiffon in green and brown to make the two skirts because it is a light fabric meaning a nice flowing drape when worn by the model. Also it is sheer so I could use this to make the grave layer some-what visible through the nature layer.
On the top nature layer I made a load of flowers out of ribbon and hand sewed them onto the dress in random clusters to reflect a meadow full of wild flowers. On the grave layer I arranged motifs representing the Capitol and all the death they caused (like skeleton pieces, blood stained white roses to represent President Snow and a hand drawn Capitol symbol dripping blood) and stuck these using heat transfer around the base of the skirt so they looked like they were under the flowers on the meadow layer. Because of the sheer fabric you could see these through the nature layer so they genuinely looked half buried among the flowers.
When in the setting it looked like the meadow had grown up and around the mannequin and grew into the costume.
Hair and Makeup; I did a take on the signature diagonal braid from the movies but made it a half up-do to soften it. I kept the makeup natural looking apart from around the eyes which is dark to represent the ever present shadow of her past.
I used a high-low skirt for these layers to show the flowing meadow. I used chiffon in green and brown to make the two skirts because it is a light fabric meaning a nice flowing drape when worn by the model. Also it is sheer so I could use this to make the grave layer some-what visible through the nature layer.
On the top nature layer I made a load of flowers out of ribbon and hand sewed them onto the dress in random clusters to reflect a meadow full of wild flowers. On the grave layer I arranged motifs representing the Capitol and all the death they caused (like skeleton pieces, blood stained white roses to represent President Snow and a hand drawn Capitol symbol dripping blood) and stuck these using heat transfer around the base of the skirt so they looked like they were under the flowers on the meadow layer. Because of the sheer fabric you could see these through the nature layer so they genuinely looked half buried among the flowers.
When in the setting it looked like the meadow had grown up and around the mannequin and grew into the costume.
Hair and Makeup; I did a take on the signature diagonal braid from the movies but made it a half up-do to soften it. I kept the makeup natural looking apart from around the eyes which is dark to represent the ever present shadow of her past.
Setting.
I wanted to put my costume in an instillation setting to fully engage the viewer in the environment of the epilogue lullaby. I continued the visualization of the meadow and include the willow tree mentioned in the lullaby. I represented the memorial feel of the lullaby with candles (electric for health and safety) in mason jars hung in the branches and home made memorial crosses made of string bound twigs position round the base of the tree.
I recorded myself singing the lullaby and played it in my installation to engage the reader emotionally.
I used artificial grass as the base to continue the meadow and spread all the ribbon flowers I had left over it, with fake skeleton pieces I bought among the flowers to demonstrate both layers.
I made the willow tree by randomly chiseling parts of a 6ft tall plank of wood and varnishing the rough surface to create a bark texture. I then drilled in broken branches I had collected from the woods (already on the floor, no trees were harmed in the making of my set) and decorated them with hand made willow vines made of crepe paper and painted string.
I hung pictures from my photo-shoot in the branches.
I recorded myself singing the lullaby and played it in my installation to engage the reader emotionally.
I used artificial grass as the base to continue the meadow and spread all the ribbon flowers I had left over it, with fake skeleton pieces I bought among the flowers to demonstrate both layers.
I made the willow tree by randomly chiseling parts of a 6ft tall plank of wood and varnishing the rough surface to create a bark texture. I then drilled in broken branches I had collected from the woods (already on the floor, no trees were harmed in the making of my set) and decorated them with hand made willow vines made of crepe paper and painted string.
I hung pictures from my photo-shoot in the branches.