The decorations in Qin Opera facial makeup are extremely unique. Artists select the most representative features from the legends, spirit, character, emotions, appearance and identity of the characters in the play to exaggerate, exaggerate and model them. Processed to become the stereotype of the character.
When a character appears on the stage, facial makeup will first give the audience a clear concept of character, which is very conducive to the shaping and grasping of the character's image in subsequent plots. This art form has been widely recognized and familiar to people for a long time.
Qin Opera facial makeup focuses on the eyebrows, eyes, lines and colors to depict characters. In facial makeup, the eyebrow shape is quite unique. It changes the actor's "natural eyebrow shape" into a "decorative eyebrow shape" through exaggerated deformation.
This kind of "decorative eyebrow shape" has variable shapes such as thickness, length, curvature, convergence and dispersion, and has greater flexibility and rich expressive power in highlighting the character's personality. Common eyebrow shapes include Taishan eyebrows, mandarin duck eyebrows, dragon eyebrows, lying silkworm eyebrows, flower eyebrows, splayed eyebrows, etc.
Taishan eyebrows are often used on the faces of generals, showing their unyielding power, bravery and prowess, such as Huang Gai, Li Zicheng, Zhang Fei and other generals; Yuanyang eyebrows are often used on characters who are dishonest, showing their insidiousness and treachery, such as Yan Nian and others in "Zhou Ren Returns to the Mansion"; dragon eyebrows are often used on the faces of mythological figures, showing their extraordinary mind and magical powers; lying silkworm eyebrows are thick and powerful, showing their boldness and loyalty, such as the face of Guan Yu; flower eyebrows are like the face of Xiang Yu , it is said that the eyebrows of the King of Chu were divided into five colors, so they were also called flower eyebrows. The eyebrows are in the shape of a figure eight and are mostly used on scoundrels and humorous characters.
In addition, there are tiger eyebrows, sword eyebrows, lion eyebrows, broom eyebrows, knife eyebrows, etc., which are mostly used on the faces of military commanders.
Qin Opera facial makeup has a unique aspect in the shape of the eyes. In daily life, people are accustomed to describe those handsome figures as "fair-faced", those with a strong temperament as "thick eyebrows and big eyes", and those with a violent temper as "raised eyebrows and staring eyes".
Therefore, when artists deal with eye shapes, they summarize, refine, exaggerate and deform them based on life, changing the "natural eye shape" into a "decorative eye shape" and giving various typical Characteristics, thus very artistic charm.
The common eye shapes in Qin Opera include: leopard eyes and thick round eyes, which are used to express majesty and bravery. They are generally used for heroic and staunch figures, such as Zhang Fei, Gao Baotong, etc.; the left and right are of different sizes and irregular positions. The male and female eyes are generally used on villains, such as Liu Biao and Bai Shigang; they are often used on the faces of Lingguan and Wen Zhong in mythological dramas; the eyes are long and narrow, with upturned corners, and the extremely beautiful red and phoenix eyes are like the face of Guan Yu; It is mostly used for triangular eyes of gangsters, scoundrels or humorous characters.
The decorations of Qinqiang facial makeup are mainly concentrated around the Yintang of the character's face, scattered among the top, crust and sun. For example, the forehead, face, nose, etc. are mainly line drawing, so it is also called line drawing painted face. This is different from other types of drama. It is characterized by smooth line drawing, free turning, thick and thin, vigorous and powerful, often done in one stroke.
Common patterns include bead-spot pattern, triangular flame pattern, swirl pattern, sky-high pattern, towering column pattern, eyebrow pattern, etc.
The beads are patterned into dots and dotted on the monk’s forehead, symbolizing the Buddha’s shining light. Pointing on the child's yintang echoes the two eyebrows, which means "two dragons playing with pearls".
The triangular flame pattern is usually painted in Yintang, symbolizing a bad temper and easy excitement. When painting this pattern, middle-aged people usually use red due to their strong vitality, while elderly people tend to use light red because they are old.
Swirl patterns include large and small convolution patterns, which are composed of twists and turns of lines. They are used to symbolize the strange appearance and mischievous nature of the characters. They are also known as "whirlpool faces", such as "Goujiatan" Gao Baotong in "Beheading Qin Ying" and Ma Wu in "Jade Tiger Pendant", etc.
The swirling pattern gives people a sense of flowing clouds, floating and jumping, making the character's personality more clear and prominent. This is the main feature that distinguishes Qin Opera facial makeup from other types of opera facial makeup.
The sky-high pattern starts from the Yintang line and rushes to the top of the forehead. The decorative lines of the Tongtianzhu pattern extend to the philtrum of the lips, and are mostly used for heroic and upright characters, such as Wei Hu, Jia Sidao, Xu Yanzhao, etc. The eyebrow pattern is oval in shape and is often used instead of the eyebrows to show the character's ability to think.
In addition, there are special decorative patterns used to symbolize and reveal the character's personality and psychological state. For example, the crescent pattern dedicated to Bao Zheng, also known as the horseshoe pattern, symbolizes his upright nature and bright as the sun. The moon; the gourd pattern dedicated to Meng Liang's face symbolizes that he is good at attacking with fire; the frog pattern dedicated to Wang Yanzhang's forehead symbolizes that he is familiar with water and is good at water battles.
In addition, there are Tai Chi patterns among the three religions, Sun Wukong’s jewelry patterns, Yang Qilang’s tiger patterns, Lantern Buddha’s moth patterns, and Lei Zhenzi’s flame patterns, which symbolize the mythical figures’ powerful Taoism and supernatural powers. It is vast and can transform fickle characteristics.
The colors of Qin Opera facial makeup are simple, lively, bright and gorgeous. Each facial makeup is adjusted to black, and the color is calm and changeable. One or several colors are often used as the main color to depict the basic personality of the character.
Traditionally, there are "Hongzhong", "White traitor", "Black Geng", "Green stubborn", "Huangcan", "Blue ghost", "Golden fairy", "Miscellaneous", etc. The coloring formula is full and rich but not cluttered, giving each character a distinct personality.
The overall styling style of Qin Opera facial makeup art is strong, eye-catching, bright and fresh, which is integrated with the high-pitched and exciting singing tune, reflecting the authentic loess culture and the traditional simple aesthetics of the Chinese nation.
Qin Opera facial makeup