Strutter’s Complete Guide to Clown Makeup - a book review | clown ministry

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Book review of Strutter's Complete Guide to Clown Makeup, by Jim Roberts

The finest book on clown make-up currently available. Saturated with color photographs of every step of make up application & removal, discussion of how your face customizes clown face, designing your own specific face, etc.

It also includes a very nice discussion of the three major types of clown make up (whiteface, auguste, character/hobo), with a nice photo gallery showing the step-by-step transformation of an individual into each of the clown types.

I cannot convey the importance of the gallery of styles that Jim provides in this book. For instance, he includes a page that is nothing but line drawings of eye templates -- different styles of eye & eyebrow 'looks' for your clown. Likewise for a gallery of different mouths. He also discusses the variety of noses available, and from what reputable dealers. Ditto for wigs, and how to wear them, and the different vendors of clown make up, and the pros and cons of each.

Most of all, this book deals with how to make your clown unique. Jim teaches you to look at your face in the same way that an artist looks at a blank canvas. He also teaches something I cannot echo strongly enough -- your clown face is not a mask to hide your features, but a tool to extend them. Learn how to make your unique clown face, which is based on your physical features -- Jim teaches you how in this book.

(Trivia note: you can see a picture of Jim Roberts' clown, Strutter, on the cover of the book -- the hobo clown at the bottom left).

Simply put, highly recommended. I rate it 4 clowns on a 5-clown scale.

Book Description of Strutter's Complete Guide to Clown Makeup, courtesy of Amazon.com

It takes know-how to create a professional looking clown face. Contrary to popular belief a proper clown face is not worn as a mask. It should be designed to compliment the natural features in the face in order to enhance the clown's expressions. In this book Jim Roberts, a.k.a. Strutter the Clown, describes the different types of clown faces and how you can design a unique face of your own. He provides detailed step-by-step directions for applying makeup to create the three basic clown face types: Whiteface, Auguste, and Tramp. Included are tips on powdering, applying rubber and putty noses, how to handle eyeglasses, handling common makeup problems, and proper makeup selection and removal. Includes full-color, close-up photos which offer step-by-step directions for applying makeup.

About the Author of Strutter's Complete Guide to Clown Makeup

Jim Roberts is a former president of the World Clown Association. He has won makeup and skit competitions at national and regional clown conventions and teaches the art of clowning for the Continuing Education Department at the University of Kentucky.