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Opera facial make-up originates from
totem in ancient times, develops into
facial paintings of the Song and Yuan
Dynasties, and eventually takes the shape
of facial costume of the Ming and Qing
Dynasties. It is a pattern of put-on
facial make-up for opera actors and
actresses in the stereotype roles of
"painted face" and clown. It plays
the artistic functions of implying
commendatory and derogatory connotations
and differentiating benevolence and
malevolence, enabling the audience to
get a glimpse of the inner world of actors
and actresses through their symbolic facial
make-up. In this sense, facial make-up has
obtained the reputation as "painting of
heart and soul".
Opera facial make-up utilizes the color
of red, purple, black, white, blue, green,
yellow, dark red, gray, golden and silver,
with each color representing a unique
stereotype character. In general, red
symbolizes utter devotion and loyalty;
purple embodies fortitude and resourcefulness;
black manifests faithfulness and integrity;
white implies craft; blue represents valor
and vigor; green signifies justice and chivalry;
yellow exemplifies cruelty. Dark red is reserved
for loyal old generals while golden and silver
are used for Buddha, gods, ghosts and demons.
Opera facial make-up, as the product of fine
artisanship, has become part of the masterpieces
in the thousands years of Chinese culture
and art.
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