Happy Holidays!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from J. Anthony Kosar and Kosart Effects Studios! 

Visit www.kosartatelier.com for enrollment info!

Cyclops makeup by Kosart Effects Studios. Photo by Bear McGivney.

KOSAR Returns to FACE OFF

J. Anthony Kosar won Face Off Season 4.  His student Dina Cimarusti won Face Off Season 7.  Now watch Kosar's return to Face Off on Season 8 as a Coach / Mentor to a team of new contestants!  On Tuesday's beginning January 13th, 2015 at 9/8c, tune into the Syfy Channel to watch Chicagoland's celebrated FX artist back on television, lending his teaching techniques to helping a new crop of contestants better their work for the judges.  Though Kosar will not be competing on this season, it will be a fun season with outstanding make-ups and 15 extremely talented contestants.  He is joined by Face Off Season 2 Chamption Rayce Bird and Face Off Season 3 Finalist / Season 5 Champion Laura Tyler.  So be sure to continue rooting for #TeamKosart #TeamAnthony and don't miss this new season of Face Off!  Set your DVRs now!

HERE IS THE NEWEST SEASON 8 TRAILER:

Face Off images © courtesy Syfy.
J. Anthony Kosar portrait photo by Bear McGivney.
All rights reserved.

Kosart Student Spotlight: Dina Cimarusti

CONGRATULATIONS DINA!!!  History was made on Tuesday Night, October 28th, 2014, when Dina Cimarusti, student of Face Off Season 4 Champion J. Anthony Kosar at Kosart Atelier: School for Entertainment Arts for 2 years, was crowned Champion of her season, Season 7!  Dina was one of two Kosart Atelier students who ventured to compete on Face Off this season, one being Scott Mitchell, (read about Scott HERE).

It brings me great pride and excitement as her teacher and mentor of over 2 years, to see her from her beginning to what she has accomplished!  Dina is a humble person with an kind personality, extremely gifted talent, and a hunger to learn and make her art the best it can be.  She began as a cake decorator, but upon stumbling upon my classes in 2012, she quickly adapted her cake decorating skills to the art of make-up and FX sculpture through my teachings.  Always one of the top students, she met each class project with enthusiasm, and often went above and beyond what was asked of her in class.  Her execution for each piece was unmatched, and it was inspiring to see her progression over the years.

Here is a look back, a walk down memory lane, like a proud parent looking through a photo album, to see some of her journey of becoming Syfy's latest Face Off Champion ...

Here she is in the class that began Dina's transition into the FX world, the Art of Mask Making at Kosart Atelier! Looking back at where she started in 2012, I am so proud of how far she has come!

 

Dina putting her cake decorating skills to use making her first mold in Art of Mask Making class at Kosart Atelier in 2012! She learned quick and always made it look like "as easy as baking a cake" ... literally ... haha...

Here is Dina watching an airbrushing demo in the Art of Mask Making class at Kosart Atelier in 2012: 

Dina with her mask concept design, her unpainted latex mask, and a cake of her mask that she baked for the entire Art of Mask Making class at Kosart Atelier! We knew she was a special artist with amazing talent from day one, seeing how her cake was sculpted just as well as her sea creature mask.  It tasted awesome too, though I was sad cutting into it!

Dina sculpting her giant lizard full-head mask in Advanced Mask Making class at Kosart Atelier in 2013! There were so many amazing masks in that class sculpted by the students, but Dina's was definitely one of the standouts!

Here Dina introduces her signature technique of "piping" texture on her lizard sculpture in Advanced Mask Making class at Kosart Atelier, a technique that she borrowed from her cake decorating skill set! She was always inventive with her approach, quickly adapting from the culinary baking world to the FX world with style!

After taking both of the mask making classes, Dina ventured into the Art of Makeup FX class at Kosart Atelier! Here she does her first 2D age makeup on herself in 2013:

Dina's imaginative makeups made her a stand out in my Art of Make Up FX classes as well at Kosart Atelier! Here is her 2D character makeup from 2013 that shows her creativity and anatomical understanding: 

Upon mastering the 2D makeup applications, Dina excelled at the 3D out-of-the-kit makeup techniques to create this terrifying zombie makeup in the Art of Make-Up FX class at Kosart Atelier in 2013! 

 

Dina was always a leading student at Kosart Atelier, soaking up every technique and always asking the right questions. Now she won the Face Off Season 7 finale after leading the completion all season!  

Dina took her makeup FX to the next level in our On-Skin Silicone FX workshop at Kosart Atelier:

Dina continued her training by learning the FX approach to airbrushing in the Airbrush FX workshop at Kosart Atelier painting one of the vastly growing army of GRUNT masks! Can you spot our star?

The final class that Dina took is the Advanced Make-Up FX class at Kosart Atelier in 2013, combining everything she learned to date with new techniques in sculpting, molding, casting, and applying foam-latex prosthetics!

 Once again Dina soaked up all the techniques in the Advanced Makeup FX class at Kosart Atelier in 2013 to create a beautifully sculpted and detailed prosthetic, putting her at the top of the class:

 

 

With an eye for detail, Dina learned to apply and paint prosthetics with precision in the Advanced Make-Up FX class at Kosart Atelier in 2013, as she is seen here applying her Dragon Empress prosthetic to herself with the rest of the class:

 

Here is Dina's final makeup application of her first prosthetic that she learned to create in the Advanced Make-Up FX class at Kosart Atelier in 2013, her final training that prepared her for Face Off! When I saw her final makeup, I knew she had what it takes to not only compete on Face Off, but also take the title, so I encouraged her to audition! It has been such an honor for me as her teacher to watch her grow as an artist from the beginning to where she is today! I am so proud of all that she has accomplished!

 

Photo by Bear McGivney.

 After her taking classes at Kosart Atelier, I brought Dina in to be part of my team to work on several Kosart Effects Studios projects to continue teaching her beyond the classroom, and also get her more prepared for Face Off season 7!

One of the first projects Dina assisted on was the sculpting, molding, casting, and application of "Ivan the Cyclops" for a Floor & Decor commercial, that you can see HERE.  Dina blocked out the Cyclops cowl sculpture that I refined and finished.  Though we had several issues with the cooking of the prosthetics, Dina and the team rose to the challenge and in 4 hours of application before set, we fixed the prosthetics and delivered a successful makeup to set that the client loved.  Dina was key in that process, and helped in the painting process as well.

 

She missed a few of the team projects due to filming her season, but did also work on a Mrs. Doubtfire-esque make-up that I can’t give many specifics yet.  However, Dina assisted in molding the life-casts and helping to float-off the make-up I designed and sculpted, and assisting in application of an 8-piece encapsulated silicone prosthetic for one of the set days.  Though she missed much of this project due to filming her season, she jumped right in like a natural, helping to apply a silicone prosthetic for the first time. 

On Face Off, Dina won 5 out of the 13 Spotlight Challenges, and also won 1 Audition / Foundation Challenge.  One of her wins, for the Greek God challenge, she was the ONLY top look with her stunning Aphrodite make-up!  She had an outstanding run on Face Off, and in my opinion, one of the best competitors ever on Face Off!  Plus it was fun watching her do techniques that she learned here at Kosart Atelier, including when she fixed her cowl with cotton and latex, just as we did on our Cyclops project.  And it was fun watching her showing off her own technique of "piping" detail onto her sculptures and make-ups!

 

Face Off Photos by Brett Patrick Jenkins.

I had the pleasure of going to Dina's Finale Party last week, to share in the excitement of her victory.  It was so exciting to see everyone there to cheer on #TeamDina as she brought the title back home to Chicago!  And seeing her win and her reaction, along with her boyfriend's and mother's reaction on screen, and there in person brought a tear to my own eye.  I am honored to have been there, and especially to be part of her incredible journey of becoming her own accomplished artist that she is today.  Watch how her Finale Party reacted when she was announced the winner:

Dina is an outstanding artist and a remarkable person, having became more than a student, she became a colleague, and more importantly, a friend.  Dina's talent goes far beyond what she knows she herself is capable of, and I think her winning Face Off season 7 proves that!  I am so thrilled that the world now sees what I have seen since 2012.  It takes a lot of courage to put oneself and his/her work on display to be vulnerable and open for critique and criticism the way Dina did, but she did, and won on her own, and now returns with the confidence of a champion!  Dina always had the talent and artistic vision, and I am so thankful that she brought that talent through Kosart Atelier so that I could unlock the FX world for her to unleash her talent in.  I am so excited for her and proud of her, and I am looking forward to what her future holds, and I look forward to all the projects to come!

You can come see some of Dina's work in person, along with over 50 award-winning artists from all over the world at the 4th Annual MALEFICIUM Dark Art Exhibition Opening and Artist Reception on Saturday November 15th from 3pm to 10pm at Kosart Gallery in Westmont, IL!

So now that is 2 Face Off wins from Kosart Atelier!  The Kosart Legacy lives on!  You watched me win Face Off Season 4.  You watched my student Dina win Face Off Season 7.  Now watch my return to Face Off for Season 8 as I coach a team of new contestants! Be sure to watch SEASON 8 on Tuesdays beginning January 13th, 2015 9/8c on Syfy!

 

Photos by Kosart Effects Studios LLC, Kosart Atelier, Bear McGivney, Brett Patrick Jenkins, and Syfy,

and copyright their respective artists.  All Rights Reserved.

 

Happy Halloween 2014!

Kosar at Son of Monsterpalooza

Visit Face Off Season 4 Champion and award-winning artist J. Anthony Kosar at Son of Monsterpalooza this weekend, September 12 - 14, 2014 at the Marriott Hotel & Convention Center in Burbank, CA!  Come by and see some of Kosar's recent work, and check out his new airbrush, the Kosart PHANTOM Pro, available at the show.  For more info, visit www.monsterpalooza.com

Photos by Bear McGivney, J. Anthony Kosar, & Kosart Effects Studios LLC.

Kosart Atelier Alumni at MASK FEST

If you are at Mask Fest in Indianapolis, IN his weekend, stop by the booth of some Kosart Atelier Alumni and the members of my Kosart Effects Team, including Face Off Season 7's Dina Cimarusti and Scott Mitchell, and artist Neil Viola who will be showing off some of their awesome work, and doing some killer Make-Up FX demos at their booth! Check it out!

Also be sure to stop by the other Kosart Atelier Alumni booth of Brad Zonka as Darb Designz, and stop by Kosart Atelier Sponsor Paasche Airbrush Company for some airbrushing goodies! 

Lots of friends at this show, including my Face Off Season 4 brother HOUSE, Face Off Season 2's Beki Ingram, one of my mentors Jordu Schell, and so many more...  wish I was going this year! Have fun!

 Image via Scott Mitchell Creative Design.

KFX Wizardry at Wizard World Chicago

Be sure to stop by the Kosart Atelier booth #1305 at Wizard World Chicago Comic Con THIS WEEKEND Aug 21-24, 2014 at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL for enrollment information on Classes and Workshops from Chicagoland's premier School for Entertainment Arts, founded by Face Off Season 4 Champion J. Anthony Kosar!  We are the only Make-Up FX School in Chicagoland to have 2 students competing on Face Off, Dina Cimarusti and Scott Mitchell!

And come see Face Off Season 7 FX Artist and Kosart Atelier's own Scott Mitchell do a War Wolf make-up transformation LIVE at the Kosart booth #1305 on Saturday August 23, 2014, beginning at 12pm!  Don't miss it! This is the prosthetic he created in the Advanced Make-Up FX class, enrolling now!  Info on this class HERE

We will also have some Kosart PHANTOM Pro Airbrushes available for purchase at the Kosart booth #1305!

. . . And come meet the Monster Prom boys, the awkwardly charming, teenage Dracula, Frankenstine, and Wolf-Boy that the Kosart Effects team recently created for Joshua Hoffine and Sony! 

Click HERE for more info on Wizard World Chicago!

Photos by Kosart Effects Studios, Bear McGivney, & Joshua Hoffine.  Copyright their respective owners.  All rights reserved.

 

KOSART ATELIER at FLASHBACK WEEKEND

Be sure to stop by the Kosart Atelier booth at Flashback Weekend THIS WEEKEND Aug 8-10, 2014 for enrollment information for Chicagoland's premier School for Entertainment Arts, founded by Face Off Season 4 Champion J. Anthony Kosar!  We are the only Make-Up FX School to have 2 students competing on Face Off, Dina and Scott!

Click HERE for more information on Flashback Weekend!

 

Kosart Student Spotlight: Scott Mitchell

Upon watching the Face Off Season 7 premiere, I wanted to tell everyone of the pride I had watching 2 of my students from Kosart Atelier: School for Entertainment Arts, Scott and Dina, make it onto the biggest competition for make-up FX, but primarily take this time to back up the work of one of those individuals.  Scott Mitchell was the first artist eliminated on a first ever “Audition Challenge” foundation make-up.

Scott is one of my first students.  Back in April 2011 when I just opened the doors to my new studio and just started teaching classes, both he and his son were there for my first set of classes.  He has taken every first class I have ever offered, taking all 12 of my classes.  Always one of the top students, he met each class project with enthusiasm, and often went above and beyond what was asked of him in class.  He would come up with great designs for characters and creatures, giving them each a wonderful back story that made you want to know more.  He always had great execution for each piece, and it was inspiring to see his progression over the years.

 

It is because of his great talent and enthusiasm that I began bringing Scott in to help and assist in classes and workshops that he has already taken, to now helping to instruct my classes at Kosart Atelier: Schoolfor Entertainment Arts, and bringing him in to help on Kosart Effects projects.

 

Scott was the first member of my team at Kosart Effects Studios, which later came to include several others, including Season 7’s Dina Cimarusti.  With the team, I brought Scott in to continue learning beyond the classroom, by tackling several projects.  It was really an exciting time at the studio, Scott quickly became my right hand man.

One of the first projects Scott assisted on was the molding, casting, and application of "Ivan the Cyclops" for a Floor & Decor commercial, that you can see HERE.  Though we had several issues with the cooking of the prosthetics, Scott and the team rose to the challenge and in 4 hours of application before set, we fixed the prosthetics and delivered a successful makeup to set that the client loved.  Scott was key in that process.

Another was for a boogeyman character for Joshua Hoffine’s first film Black Lullabye.  For this, Scott was tasked to make a gnarly set of boogeyman dentures.  Scott’s attention to detail and precision in execution made those teeth top notch and was the element that helped to bring the whole make-up together.  

We worked on another project for Joshua Hoffine and Sony UK, Monster Prom.  For this my team and I created awkward, nerdy, teenage versions of the classic monsters: Dracula, Wolf-Man, and Frankenstein’s Monster.  I designed these 3 characters, and Scott was key in adding the final details to the Wolf-Boy character sculpture, he sculpted and molded the Wolf-Boy feet, along with molding, casting, and seaming the 3 monster boy sculptures, helping to sculpt the dental pieces, casting and finishing all the dental pieces, and doing some of the hair work.

And the last of the major projects was a Mrs. Doubtfire-esque make-up that I can’t give many specifics yet.  However, Scott was key in molding and casting the make-up I designed and sculpted, creating the dental veneers and custom fingernails, and assisting in application of an 8-piece encapsulated silicone prosthetic for set days.  This make-up has to be hyper-realistic and perfect to make people believe this man is an elderly woman, and Scott has proven to have the chops to help get that make-up there. 

All in all, Scott is an amazing artist and a remarkable person.  He became more than a student, he became a colleague, and more importantly, a friend.  His sculpting of his own characters and creatures for masks, busts, and make-ups are all incredible, and I just feel sorry that none of you will have the opportunity to see what he can do on Face Off.

Despite what you may have seen on Face Off, or what the judges said, Scott does have what it takes to compete at that level.  My money was on him and Dina going into the competition, and were he to go again, knowing what happened on the first episode, I would still put my money on Scott to win it all.

Everyone has a bad day on Face Off.  I know I had a few of my own, and luckily I survived those trying times to ultimately win the show.  However, as we all know, Scott did not make it past the first round, which wasn’t even a Spotlight Challenge.  It was a twist to have 2 people eliminated right off the bat with a new “Audition Challenge” which was nothing more than a foundation make-up.  It is unfortunate that they eliminated artists based on a foundation make-up, that utilizes generic prosthetics that he or she was not responsible for in the design and sculpt of that piece, especially when you are given that piece to work with.  I’d rather see a contestant be eliminated based on the creativity and execution of their own work in the shop.  If that were the case on other seasons, some of the best makeup artists that ultimately made it to the finale as well as some who won their season would have been eliminated in their first foundation challenge based on their bad decisions on their first foundation make-up.  How tragic that would have been, and that should show that such talent and potential could have been wasted on this season’s Audition Challenge.  Yes, some bad decisions were made, but I guarantee you that had Scott made it past that round to the shop he would have gone very far, possibly making it to the finale and winning the show.  Though I do not know Gabby, I have the same belief in Gabby who was also eliminated.  It was sad to see them go based on a foundation challenge.  I hope they are both given another opportunity to come back to Face Off and show the world what they can do.  I do not know Gabby, but I know Scott, and Scott is a creative force to be reckoned with.

Here are a few of Scott’s pieces that show what he can do when actually given an opportunity to design and sculpt his own make-ups and sculptures.

So with that, I just want to say that I am still very proud of Scott, as very few make it as far as he did.  He beat out thousands of people just to have made it that far.  It takes a lot to put yourself and your art on display the way he did, and I just hope he gets another opportunity to show you all what he is made of.

On a lighter note, I am also very proud of my other student Dina, and am ecstatic that she made it to the next round and won the Audition Challenge.  I will do a write up on her and her work as well, but wanted to address Scott first.

Congrats to Dina and all the other contestants who actually made it on Season 7.  Thanks for taking the time to read this, and please continue to watch Face Off every Tuesday at 9/8c on Syfy.  It is my favorite show, and I can’t wait to see what happens next!

Photos by Kosart Effects Studios LLC, Kosart Atelier, Bear McGivney, Scott Mitchell, Simin Koernig, Joshua Hoffine, Brett Patrick Jenkins, and Syfy,

and copyright their respective artists.  All Rights Reserved.