Masks & facial adornment - research

My research into masks began with an obvious physical mask - masquerade masks.  Masquerade balls, in which dancers wore masks concealing part or all of their faces, can be traced back to the 15th century when Carnival season was popular.  France and Italy both held plentiful masquerade balls - in fact, Venice still has a carnival every year today, in which participants adorn masks and clothes suitable for a ball.

Please see my Pinterest board here for some photographic inspiration:

http://www.pinterest.com/hanamintz/facial-maskingadornment/

Following the above research, I started to look into the makeup and style of the Japanese Geisha (芸者), also known as geiko (芸子) or geigi (芸妓).  My own name is a Japanese word for 'flower', thus inspiring me to further delve into Japanese culture.
Geishas act as hostesses to gentlemen and are trained in various arts to entertain, such as classical music and dance.

Their makeup famously consists of a painted white face, with strong red lipstick and black eyeliner around the eyes.  Unwhitened areas can be found on the back of the neck in a V or W shape, giving the illusion of the white base as a mask.  The bottom lip is rounded with the red lipstick in order to create the shape of a flower bud.
After working as a Geisha for three years, the women wear a more subdued style of makeup.

Please see the above link for more photographic inspiration of Geishas.

I have started a watercolour portrait of a Geisha, and may also create a portrait inspired by masquerade masks.