Institute of Art Design + Technology Dún Laoghaire
Ireland’s campus for the Creative Industries

Courtney Mulligan 

BA [Hons] Character MakeUp Design

Hello, I'm Courtney! I'm a character designer from Co. Monaghan. My interest in visualising and creating characters from stories, as well as transforming people with makeup, stems from my love of art and art history. I enjoy research and how it can inform and bring a story to life; combining research and creative skills to create authentic characters for screen is a unique challenge and honour. I'm now eager to gain real-world experience in the film industry, as well as to continue learning and expanding on the skills I gained at IADT.

Thérèse Raquin is a French novel written by Émile Zola. It was first published in 1867.

According to Zola, his goal with Thérèse Raquin was to examine temperaments rather than characteristics... “Thérèse and Laurent are human animals, nothing more… There is a complete absence of soul.” This relates to scientific beliefs at the time which believed criminals were biologically predisposed to crime and that their criminality was visible through exterior signs. I did work on these pseudo-sciences for my thesis so I had an interest in the themes explored in the book, to begin with.

Thérèse Raquin provided opportunities to conduct period research and a challenge to create believable period characters. I used historical research and references, taking inspiration mainly from art at the time.

This story also gave me the scope to use medical research and references to design my characters and create realistic prosthetic pieces for believable wounds, injuries, etc.


Criminology and Surveillance in the Nineteenth Century: Western Theories and Technologies.

My thesis looks at Western theories on crime and criminality from the 19th century and how these earlier theories have directly impacted criminology as we know it today. I focus on the biological theories of phrenology, physiognomy, anthropology and eugenics. Looking at how these theories emerged in response to 19th century social thought on crime and criminality regarding race, class and gender. At this time, biology was seen to have a significant role in shaping human behaviour, particularly criminal behaviour.

I considered the work of early criminologists in Europe and the United States, such as Franz Joseph Gall, Cesare Lombroso, Alphonse Bertillon and Francis Galton. Incorporating primary resources from the time along with contemporary research on these topics. The discussion looks at how 19th century representations of criminals as animalistic and degenerate have influenced contemporary views of crime and innate criminality. Developments in technology, such as photography, impacted the way information about the criminal body was documented, stored and produced. I argue that these early textual and visual accounts of criminals continue to influence images of criminals today.