Jack Pierce, Head of Make-up at Universal Studios 1928

A packed house of movie makeup students and enthusiasts gathered last night to honor pioneering makeup artist Jack Pierce at the opening of Cinema Makeup School’s new Jack Pierce Memorial Gallery for Makeup and Character Arts. The gallery, which is open to the public on weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., showcases makeup pieces and props from top professional artists and special effects firms as well as work from up-and-coming artists who graduated from the school. In the center of the wood-paneled space, two pieces by sculptor Brent Armstrong pay tribute to the gallery’s namesake, Jack Pierce.

Jack Pierce and assistant build the makeup for Boris Karloff as Frankenstein’s Monster.

Pierce, who was the first ever makeup department head at Universal Studios, is well-known in the special effects community for his iconic and inspiring monster designs, including the title monsters from The Mummy and The Wolf Man, and, perhaps most notably, Universal’s film adaptation of Frankenstein. For that film, Pierce worked on actor Boris Karloff, designing a look with a flattened head and protruding neck electrodes that became the definitive version of the character.

At the school’s dedication ceremony, makeup historian Scott Essman gave a detailed presentation on Pierce’s life and work, drawing from his book, Jack Pierce: The Man Behind the Monsters. Visitors then had the opportunity to tour the gallery and school, where they were treated to work by present day makeup and effects luminaries like Steve Wang, Joel Harlow, and Leonard Engelman.

Jack Pierce Memorial Gallery on opening night (photo credit Mike Spatola)-1

Mermaid bodies by Joel Harlow for Pirates of the Caribbean On Stranger Tides (photo Michael Spatola)

Find out more about the exhibition and about the Cinema Makeup School by visiting www.cinemamakeup.com