Applications closed 2018/19
Applications for 2018/19 entry to this course have now closed.
This course teaches the specialist skills to become a make-up and prosthetic artist for performance.
On BA (Hons) Hair, Make-up and Prosthetics for Performance you will learn research, design, technical and production skills. Experience is built across performance genres, giving students a broad choice of career.
This course is based at Lime Grove in Shepherd’s Bush. Find out about the local area, including Holland Park and Notting Hill in our local area guides on the Student Life pages.
LCF How To: Halloween make-up demo
Students work on WARPAINT: Alexander McQueen and Make-Up exhibition
Film by LCF graduate Julia Sanchez Merino (BA (Hons) Hair, Make-Up & Prosthetics for Performance and producer Jose Miguel Esteve
BA Hair, Make up & Prosthetics student work EmilyJane Fielding
Our LCFBA18 showcase at Oval Space in Behtnal Green is open now, and today we shine the light on some of this season’s star graduates from design, media and communication courses. Working […]
Halloween is the season for little ghosts and goblins to take to the streets, and the occasional ‘Killer Clown’ sighting in a Asda carpark. We’ve taken this opportunity to look […]
Renowned makeup artist Lisa Elridge came to LCF this week to discuss her exciting new book Face Paint. Here beauty blogger Jo Sait describes the event. On Monday night, as part of the Inside […]
Up next in our Class of 2015 series is BA (Hons) Make-Up and Prosthetics for Performance student Stacie Smith. Here Stacie discusses her work and the interesting narrative behind it. LCF News: Give us one interesting fact […]
As we’re sure you already know, Fashion Space Gallery at LCF recently unveiled their latest exhibition which explores the wonderful world of Alexander McQueen and Make-Up. The beautifully curated exhibition sees […]
As part of Friday Late, an ever-changing, curated programme of events run on a monthly basis by the V&A, BA (Hons) Hair, Make-Up and Prosthetics and BA (Hons) Hair and […]
Take a tour of LCF's world renowned fashion library, ideal for research and study.
Take a tour of Golden Lane's workshops and leather room.
Explore our social spaces, for collaborative study and breaks, across our six sites in London.
The academic year for this course is divided into Block 1 and Block 2.
Block 1 is of 15 weeks’ duration from late September to February. In accordance with the University timetable, there will be a four week holiday in December.
Block 2 is also of 15 weeks’ duration from mid-February to the end of June with a four week holiday for Easter.
Students on this course might be invited to participate in study trips. This may involve, for example, visits to key areas of capital cities, factories, stores and museums. Attendance on these trips is not compulsory but recommended. Details regarding timings and costs will be issued closer to the relevant trips.
Introduction to Design for Performance unit aims to introduce you to your course and its subject specialism as well as to effective learning and studentship at undergraduate level. It will orientate you to the practices and knowledge-base needed to understand your discipline and help you to develop your skills for independent & collaborative learning, reflection and your own self development. Students come from many diverse educational backgrounds and a part of this unit will enable to reflect on your own background and how that shapes the way you approach your course.
This Unit has three core purposes:
Emphasis is placed on the skills needed to locate, navigate and communicate information and ideas effectively and appropriately. You will be introduced to resources that support your studies. We will also discuss studentship, the importance of being an engaged and participatory member of the group and your own personal and professional development.
Introduction to Hair, Make-Up and Prosthetics unit will introduce you to some of the fundamental principles and techniques in wide range of hair and make-up applications. You will be required to research and record processes and exploration of techniques and approaches in a visually appropriate and informative way.
The unit encourages your development in technical areas underpinned by an understanding of the principles of make-up, prosthetics, hair and wig technical processes as well as creative approaches to enhancing or altering the performing body. You will develop an understanding on how basic techniques can be used creatively and will be encouraged to develop an enquiring approach to the technical development of make-up and hair for performance.
Introduction to Cultural and Historical Studies unit introduces the Cultural and Historical Studies approach to fashion and related areas. The unit provides a broad overview of the subject and introduces key concepts and ways of thinking that will form the basis of subsequent study. It will also inform decisions regarding the Cultural and Historical Studies unit that is chosen for future study.
Better Lives
London College of Fashion, UAL (LCF) is a leader in fashion design, media and business education. We have been nurturing creative talent for over a century, offering courses in all things fashion. We encourage students to examine the past and challenge the present. To have inventive, assertive ideas that challenge social and political agendas. We give students the skills, opportunities – and above all, the freedom – to put those ideas into practice. By leading the way in fashion design, business, and the media, we influence culture, economics and our society. This unit will provide you with a solid understanding of LCF’ core values and how they connect to your practice. As part of this unit you will explore diversity, social responsibility and sustainability, themes which you will then apply to a selected project. At this stage the emphasis is on how you apply your thinking across these important themes to your practice. Your thinking is more important than a finished piece of work at this point. Fashion can change lives. Through teaching, specialist research, and collaborative work, this unit will get you thinking differently. We want you to use fashion to examine the past, build a sustainable future and improve the way we live. That’s why we call this unit ‘Better Lives’.
Collaboration One: Design & Production unit will provide you with an opportunity to demonstrate the progress you have made over the previous block, and will enable you to integrate knowledge and principles learned to date, it will also extend other areas of craft skill and design.
You will undertake research, design development and presentation principles within a collaborative project, working with students from across the Performance Programme.
Working together, you will design and realise characters from a script or text. Your characters will exist within an agreed group designed aesthetic. Through the application of 2D and 3D approaches and for Hair, Make-up and Prosthetics students, this should include the development and realisation of a character using appropriate materials and techniques learnt in both hair and make-up and be suitable for the group aesthetic.
You will be encouraged to take an innovative approach to the realisation of your work using both experimental and traditional methods for a contemporary performance context.
You will study a Cultural and Historical Studies unit of your choice that will broaden or deepen your learning of areas relating to your interests in your chosen field. You will have the opportunity to participate in lectures, seminars and workshops with students from other courses within your School, and will read relevant academic texts and complete a formal academic essay for assessment.
Core Skill: Character and Design Development unit will introduce you to the contexts relevant to the research, design, hair and prosthetics processes for historical period productions. It will develop an awareness of research as the basis for creative design development and establish the relationship between research, design and realisation. You will research, develop and design for performance responding to a given narrative. The unit encourages development in technical areas underpinned by an understanding of the principles of prosthetic and wig production for character design and realisation. You will develop an understanding of how basic techniques can be used creatively and will be encouraged to develop an enquiring approach to the technical development of a creative character make-up design for a specific leading actor.
Situating Your Practice
Industry Project
This unit aims to develop your practitioner identity, and consider your personal manifesto for performance, by completing a performance proposal for a performance event around a location, and stimulus of your choosing. This unit brings together the technical skills that you have developed and asks you to now take them further in a performance context. It will allow you to expand your understanding of the work of practitioners who you find useful, inspiring, and interesting, before then applying that knowledge in the creation of your own performance event.
Industry PlacementThis unit aims to develop your professional skills within an industry environment. On your placement you will be able to experience the pace, atmosphere and discipline of working in the industry. This will give you practical experience of the roles, functions and operations within the industry. The unit requires a minimum of 60 work placement hours.
LCF Careers provide career guidance and one to one opportunities starting in your first year at LCF, to help you plan ahead and prepare for your work experience. You will be expected to engage and be proactive in securing your own work experience and one that is suitable to your own personal development, skills, course requirements and career aspirations. This means producing an updated CV and directly applying to companies for work experience using LCF CAREERS LIVE, LCF’s own job board, as well as other resources. You will also be expected to feedback on your work experience after your work experience.
International Study
This unit provides an opportunity to apply previous learning whilst studying your subject in a different institution. You will develop skills within your practice and gain credits for your current course whilst engaging with the academic culture of your host institution. The unit also demands a critical approach to the management of your own learning through reflection and planning. Please check with the Exchange and Mobility Officer for an up-to date list of partnerships for your programme. Students studying at a partner institution in Europe for a minimum period of three months (approx. 12 weeks) will be eligible for the Erasmus+ grant. We are unable to guarantee that every course will have an agreement with a partner host institution. As such, this unit is subject to availability. There will be a selection and application process for students who are interested in applying to take this unit of study.
During the Collaboration Two: Interdisciplinary and Experimental unit you will collaborate with other students to design and realise characters for a narrative. Working in a small group you will choose a context for the performance. You are encouraged to look at a context you may not have designed for previously, such as film, television, dance, theatre, opera, music video, advertising or fashion film. You are encouraged to collaborate with performers and students from other disciplines.
Cultural and Historical Studies Dissertation
The overall aim of the dissertation is to provide an opportunity for you to demonstrate your understanding of the critical and analytical perspectives developed within cultural and historical theory and your ability to apply those perspectives in a specific study. You will research a topic of your choice that has relevance to the discipline of cultural and historical studies. This may relate to your course discipline, and should elaborate knowledges developed in prior cultural and historical studies units. You will undertake a substantial piece of structured primary and secondary research that critically engages with cultural issues relating to fashion, the body, performance, or the media and communications industries and which reflects on the critical debates and concerns addressed in your course.
Innovation and Design unit requires you to identify an area of personal interest and to then investigate, research and experiment to develop your concept and designs for realisation in the following Personal Performance Project unit. You will demonstrate your skills in the creation of an extensive body of work to show development and experimentation.
You should consider theoretical and professional contexts of your project, and the surrounding industries, to develop your chosen narrative and performance context. You will develop an appropriate methodology and have the opportunity to explore new ideas, processes, take risks and experiment with design and production values, working to an intended performance location and audience.
The way that you structure your innovation and design work within this unit is up to you; for example, you may choose to focus on one line of enquiry, or explore a range of research and design avenues and methods.
Personal Performance Project
Building on your previous design portfolio created for the Innovation and Design unit, you will now execute the realisation of your designs. You will test your ability to respond innovatively to the challenges involved in your chosen performance context. This is an opportunity to demonstrate your specialist technical skills and specific interests through your individual body of work.
This unit will enable you to realise a personal response to your concept. The structure and outcome of your project will be determined by you. You will identify and construct individually negotiated outcomes to communicate your concept towards your chosen audience.
Modelling your Future unit will prepare you for a number of future employment or postgraduate opportunities. It will expand upon your ability to articulate your practitioner identity. You will reflect upon your professional and/or academic goals after having completed your Personal Performance Project to help you to position yourself creatively and to now construct your industry portfolio accordingly. This unit requires you to evaluate, restructure, and position your work effectively as you create a professional roadmap to your chosen future career.
All students are advised to set up a profile on portfolio.arts.ac.uk, UAL’s new portfolio platform, which can be done at any point during your time at LCF and will last for up to 12 months after graduation. This platform is often used to source student work for promotional use on the website, social media and for print and can be a great way of getting your work seen. You may also be asked to have a portfolio profile for the selection process when it comes to degree shows.
The Performance courses share an excellent range of facilities across the programmes, including a wig-making and hair styling studio, prosthetics and make-up studios with live ‘camera to TV’ link, a suite of specialist rooms for casting and mould making, plaster, fibreglass, latex, silicones and other resins, a sculpting studio, and several costume-making studios with pattern cutting tables, overlockers and industrial sewing machines. Students also have access to a large VAC former, laser cutter, print and dye room, a large spray booth, and additional access on site to design studios and IT suites.
Cecilia Pritchard (Course Leader), a LCF alumni, contributes with a diverse portfolio, academically and hands-on, in Hair, Wigs, Make-up and Prosthetics in Film, TV, Theatre and Fashion. Her work stretches from Sweden, Denmark and UK to an international career in East Asia. Working five years at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, Cecilia has worked closely with top international opera singers and costume designers on productions such as Madam Butterfly, Magic Flute, La Boheme, Tosca, Aida, Othello, Salome and many more. For 4 years Cecilia worked as a hair and make-up lecturer at Hong Kong Design Institute (HKDI) in Hong Kong where she also established many international connections.
Steven Solomon graduated in 1990 and has worked across a range of industry areas. He started out specialising in body painting, air brush body art and cosmetics. Work includes promotional events for Aida, The Lion King, Velvet Goldmine and Interview with a Vampire, Reebok, Adidas, Su-do. Development work: MAC airbrush body paint and cosmetic ranges. Fashion shows: Alexander McQueen, Hussein Chalayan, Evisu, Belstaff, Mulberry. Catwalk events: MOBO awards, Fashion Rocks, Alternative Hair Show, Pantene Beauty. Promotional/Editorial: Levi’s, Aveda, Toni and Guy, Cyberdog, Coco de Mer. Theatre work: La Cage Au Folles, The Turn of the Screw, Michael Clark at the Barbican and World Theatre at the Millennium Dome 1999. Music promotion/video: MTV, Cher, George Michael, The Cure, Enya, Tricky and The Prodigy. Advertising: BMW, Evening Standard magazine, Admiral, Direct Line, Alfa-Romeo. He has taught make-up for 22 years for London College of Fashion, Face Stockholm, Jemma Kidd Make-up School, and MAC and completed a PGCE in 2000.
Jessica Curtis trained at the Motley Theatre Design Course after training as an illustrator at the University of Brighton. She has designed for film, opera, dance and theatre both here and in Scandinavia over the last 20 years. She is currently designing the Premier of Genesis inc. at Hampstead Theatre. Recent work includes UNCLE VANYA (The Almeida) VILLETTE (West Yorkshire Playhouse), THE HOLY ROSENBERGS (National Theatre), HOTEL CERISE (Theatre Royal, Stratford East) ANOTHER DOOR CLOSED (Theatre Royal Bath), ENDGAME (Liverpool Everyman), DANGEROUS CORNER (West Yorkshire Playhouse and West End), FRANKENSTEIN (Frantic Assembly, Northampton), BURIAL AT THEBES (Nottingham Playhouse/Barbican/US Tour) and RHAPSODY (Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House) ONE FOR THE ROAD, GLASS CAGE, FOLLIES (Royal and Derngate, Northampton) THE RYME OF THE ANCIENT MARINER (Southbank Center/ Young Vic). She has also designed the Grovesnor Park Open Air Season 2013- 2016 and the opening season at the new cultural centre Storyhouse, as well as bar interiors for Underbelly at the South Bank and Hyde Park and Leicester Square.
She has taught and designed at Central School of Speech and Drama, RADA, Guildhall, Trinity College of Music, Birkbeck and RSMAD.
Lorna Campbell, alumni of the course and now a lead wig designer and creator of wig making collective Campbell Wigs. Alongside designing and making wigs & facial for stage, screen and bespoke hair loss clients, Lorna, and her team, deliver wig making workshops to industry professionals in locations such as London, NYC, LA, Atlanta GA, and Bahrain. After graduating from The London College of Fashion Lorna originally worked as a make-up artist and theatrical make-up lecturer at The City of Bristol College before focussing on wig design, making and educating. Alongside regular high-profile clients, work includes Idris Elba, Peter Serafinowicz, Jeff Waynes War of the Worlds, Jon Culshaw (as Donald Trump), MTV, Warner Bros, ITV, Showtime and the BBC. Lorna's teaching methods focus on delivering the fundamental traditional wig making techniques necessary for students to take their artistry and passion further throughout their career.
Karl J. Rouse trained as a Performer at The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and later moved into Performance Studies as a Fulbright Scholar (representing the UK government under Tony Blair) at The Tisch School of The Arts, New York University. Here he studied Directing under Richard Schechner and Anna Deavere Smith and performed in the ‘downtown’ experimental scene in venues such as PS122, La Mama, and St Annes Wearhouse. Karl has represented the Performing Arts for the Fulbright Commission at The White House, Downing Street and in the House of Lords. He was awarded a Royal Holloway, University of London, Scholarship in 2003 and studied customer service and organisational loyalty with The Disney Institute in 2006. As a producer, Karl has served as Executive Director of The Accidental Festival (The Roundhouse, The ICA, Battersea Arts Centre) which has included the work of Liz LeCompte, Simon McBurney, Richard Foreman, Katy Mitchel, Felix Barret and Tristan Sharps. Karl is a fellow of The Royal Society of The Arts, and The Centre for Excellence in Training for Theatre, where he focused upon the role of The Entrepreneurial Artist. This led to presentations at The Fulbright Conference in Beijing, the European League of Arts Institutes (ELIA) in Amsterdam, and The International Entrepreneurial Educators Conference (IEEC) in Sheffield. Karl was also the first Director of Performance at Capital City Academy, and an Assistant Principal within the Studio School Trust. He has therefore developed new curricula in new buildings for students aged 12 to 18, and 18 and above. For ten years he was a Senior Lecturer and Pathway Leader at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, University of London and has previously served as External Examiner at The National Centre for Circus Arts. Recently he has become a mentor for The Leadership Foundation, specifically working with BAME Academics seeking to move into senior leadership positions. He is a mental health first-aider and has an interest in Mindfulness in Education.
We are committed to making university education an achievable option for a wider range of people and seek to recruit students from diverse socio-economic, cultural and educational backgrounds. We are committed to supporting all our students in achieving their potential both during and after their courses.
Applications for 2018/19 entry for this course are now closed. Applications for 2019/20 entry will open in Autumn 2018.
This section includes information on how to apply, course entry requirements, selection criteria, information about interviews and portfolio advice.
You must apply through Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS), where you’ll need the following information:
Go to ‘Apply’ from the UCAS home page, where you will be able to register and create a password that gives you unique access as you complete your application form.
Contact us on:
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7514 7344
Or you can use the register your interest form.
Please note that the equal consideration deadline is 15 January.
For full details on the application process, visit the Undergraduate application page.
Applications for 2018/19 entry for this course are now closed. Applications for 2019/20 entry will open in Autumn 2018.
This section includes information on how to apply, course entry requirements, selection criteria, information about interviews and portfolio advice.
International applicants may apply through one of three routes only:
Further information on applying via UCAS is provided on the Applying through UCAS page.
If applying through UCAS, you will need the following information:
We continue to accept applications throughout the year, but please note that the equal consideration deadline is 15 January.
For full details on the application process, visit the Undergraduate application page or contact the UAL admissions team who can answer any specific questions that you may have regarding LCF's courses tailored for international students. This can include guidance for your portfolio, advice on the application process and fee advice. We offer a ‘drop-in’ facility for applicants who may be in London and wish to obtain further course and admissions information.
Entry to this course is highly competitive: applicants are expected to achieve, or already have, the course entry requirements detailed below.
The standard minimum entry requirements for this course are:
Exceptionally, applicants who do not meet these course entry requirements may still be considered if the course team judges the application demonstrates additional strengths and alternative evidence. This might, for example, be demonstrated by: related academic or work experience; the quality of the personal statement; a strong academic or other professional reference; or a combination of these factors.
All classes are conducted in English. If English is not your first language you will be asked to provide evidence of your English language ability when you enrol.
The level required by the University for this course is IELTS 6.5 with a minimum of 5.5 in each skill.
Please visit the UAL Language Requirements page, read carefully and look at the relevant documents.
What we look for
The course team seeks to recruit students who can demonstrate:
This might, for example, be demonstrated by: related academic or work experience; the quality of the personal statement, a strong academic or other professional reference; or a combination of these factors.
For this course you will be required to upload a mini portfolio. Further instructions will be sent by the course administrator after application submission. International students should contact the International Office at lcf.international@arts.ac.uk to find out about the portfolio application process.
For this course your portfolio should show evidence of: drawing skills; life drawing; research skills; process; 3D; photography; and vocational skills.
Applicants will be expected to demonstrate the following at interview: an understanding of the performing arts; a cultural awareness; visual awareness evidenced through portfolio work; a motivation for working in the performing arts industry; a motivation to succeed on the course; and a vocational focus towards hair, make-up and prosthetics
All application forms, personal statements and references are read and considered by the course team against the selection criteria listed in the Entry requirements and What we look for sections.
Depending on the quality of your application, you may be asked to submit a number of images of your work. If the course team wish to consider your application further, you will be invited to an interview where the course team will look at your portfolio and ask you questions to establish your suitability for the course. If you are successful at the interview stage you will be offered a place. Applicants are not guaranteed to be asked to upload work, nor are they guaranteed an interview.
Please note that if you are unable to attend, the College may not be able to re-schedule.
If you applied through UCAS the result of your application will be communicated to you via UCAS through ucastrack. You will only receive further communication directly from the College if your application has been successful. This will be in the form of a full offer pack including details of accommodation, fees, and other important information.
Deferred entry is normally only allowed in exceptional circumstances. Please contact us before you submit your application if you are considering applying for deferred entry.
Applicants on some courses may be invited to attend an Interview. Further details will be sent to you with your interview letter, confirming location and date. International applicants should contact the Admission Office by emailing lcf.international@arts.ac.uk about portfolio requirements (if applicable), interview times and dates.
Please note: the information outlined is an indicative structure of the course. Whilst we will aim to deliver the course as described on this page, there may be situations where it is desirable or necessary for the University to make changes in course provision, for example because of regulatory requirements or operational efficiencies, before or after enrolment. If this occurs, we will communicate all major changes to all applicants and students who have either applied or enrolled on the course. Please note that due to staff research agreements or availability, not all of the optional modules listed may be available every year. In addition, the provision of course options which depend upon the availability of specialist teaching, or on a placement at another institution, cannot be guaranteed. Please check this element of the course with the course team before making a decision to apply.
We will update this webpage from time to time with new information as it becomes available. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please use the enquiry form above.
£9,250
This applies for the 2018/19 academic year.
Tuition fees for undergraduate degree courses have been set at £9,250 per year for full-time study. This applies from the 2017/18 academic year, subject to changes in the law. Tuition fees may increase in future years for new and continuing students, in line with an inflationary amount determined by government. Please visit our Undergraduate tuition fees page for more information.
£19,350
This applies for the 2018/19 academic year.
In addition to tuition fees you are very likely to incur additional costs such as travel expenses and the cost of materials. Please read the information on our additional costs page.
Find out about the accommodation options available and how much they will cost.
There are a number of scholarships and awards available to students on this course. Use our search tool to find out more information.
All of our undergraduate courses offer career development, so that you become a creative thinker, making effective contributions to your relevant sector of the fashion industry.
Many graduates prefer to seek employment as soon as they have completed their undergraduate studies, and recent graduates have been employed on the Harry Potter films, Slum Dog Millionaire, Jane Eyre, War Horse, and Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. TV productions include Just William, Luther, Hotel Trubble, Secret Diary of a Call Girl and The Hour, and our graduates are working at the Royal Opera House, the English National Opera and the National Theatre, as well as on a number of West End musicals. One recent graduate is working for the medical prosthetics company RSL Steeper.