Vin Burnham

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Vinilla Burnham is a British costume designer for film, television, theatre and commercials, best known for creating the Batsuit for Tim Burton's Batman films, the lion Aslan for the BBC's The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, and Lady Gaga's Living Dress.

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Early training and career

Vin Burnham's parents, Edward Burnham and Lucille Steven, were both actors, and her sister Lal D'Abo is also a costume designer and maker. [1]

Burnham started her costume career in the West End with a summer job at the Royal Opera House. As a trainee in the prop workshop she assisted on headdresses for Swan Lake and The Nutcracker, learning from mask-makers and costume designers. [2] [3] Among other projects, in 1980 Burnham created headdresses for the ballet Gloria, designed by Andy Klunder, which are now in the V&A Museum, London. [4]

In the early 1980s, Burnham was recruited by costume designer James Acheson to create creature costumes and effects for Time Bandits, Monty Python's The Meaning of Life (1983), and Brazil (1985). [5] [6]

Creature creations

A Skeksis character puppet from The Dark Crystal. Skeksis on Display.jpg
A Skeksis character puppet from The Dark Crystal.

Alongside her work with Acheson, Burnham worked with Jim Henson's Creature Shop. The company's new London workshop had a state-of-the-art foam laboratory and animatronics team, based in Hampstead. [7]

Burnham's first film project with the Creature Shop was The Dark Crystal (1982). Burnham was on the Skeksis unit, created the theatrical garments worn by the evil characters. [7] The overall look of the characters was set by Brian Froud's illustrations, and Burnham and team had to translate those drawings into three-dimensional, practical costumes for the enormous puppet characters. [7]

Burnham returned to the Creature Shop for Henson's next major film project, Labyrinth , for which she created the riding goblins and Jareth's cloak. [3]

This experience working with animatronic creatures led to Burnham's commission to design Aslan, the lion hero of The Chronicles of Narnia , for the BBC's three-part adaptation first broadcast in 1988. Burnham researched real lions at London Zoo and Longleat safari park, and also referred to toy lions with more caricatured appearances. [2] The costume then started with life casts of the two performers (Ailsa Berk and William Todd Jones) who would be inside the lion, moving the body and operating the mechanical elements. A weight-supporting structure of nylon rods and sheeting was built up from backpacks, and covered with a foam musculature. Burnham collaborated with sculptor Niki Lyons to develop this strong but lightweight body. [2] Burnham sculpted the head herself using clay, with consideration of the animatronics that would open the mouth and eyes (added into the 'skull' later by Tim Rose). [2] The fur covering was a mixture of flocking, knotted horsehair and animal bristles. [2]

Superhero and science fiction era

In film fandom, Vin Burnham is best known as the designer of the Batsuit for the Tim Burton Batman films [8] , and film journalists have claimed that, "Vin created a costume that would define the character on the silver screen for two decades and beyond". [9]

Costume designer Bob Ringwood recruited Burnham to sculpt and construct the new batsuit for the 1989 film Batman . This "dark revisionist" version of the comic book character required a darker, more Gothic style suit that could, in Ringwood's words,"make somebody who was average sized and ordinary-looking into this bigger-than-life creature". [10] The moulded latex suit, which was sculpted by Burnham using modelling clay, had exaggerated musculature and a heavy cowl that prevented actor Michael Keaton from fully turning his head. The costume was credited with creating a dark, moody character and "stoic movement" for the re-imagined Batman. [10]

Following the success of the suit in Batman, Burnham made the suit for Matt Salinger as the title character of Captain America (1990). [11] Burnham's work with Henson's continued; she led the character costume design for Shredder in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991). [2]

For Batman Returns (1992), Burnham re-visited and refined the original Batsuit design. [12] She led the "Bat Shop" team, based in Burbank, California, to create a new fibreglass body cast of Batman actor Michael Keaton. [13] Sculptor Steve Wang created a clay version of the suit, which was then cast in foam latex. They addressed issues with durability on the previous film, and had the catsuit base made of Spandex with the latex sewn on top. [13] For Catwoman, played by Michelle Pfeiffer, Burnham created a black latex catsuit (manufactured by Syren clothing in Los Angeles) and provided sixty-three duplicates so they were always clean and intact for filming. [14] [15]

Burnham subsequently created costume effects for The Fifth Element (1997), a science fiction film directed by Luc Besson, with costumes designed by John Paul Gaultier. [16]

On the film Lost in Space (1998), Burnham was in charge of special effects costumes for the space portions of the film. [17] This included illuminated, sculpted space suits and cryo-suits, "which served not only as clothing but as life-support". [18] Burnham employed the sculpting and moulding process she had used in previous projects, and brought in Colin Campbell to install blue LED and fibre-optic lights through the suits. Burnham explained "we were trying to tie the costumes in with the Jupiter 2 [spaceship], so they had a machinelike quality". [18] Costume suppliers included the Ministry of Defence, who manufactured fabric spacesuits for the cast based on the Air Force G-suit. [18]

Children's television

In the 2000s, Vin Burnham designed costumes for a series of British children's television shows that included realistic and fantasy creatures. [19]

The design of Boohbah (2003), the brainchild of Teletubbies co-creator Anne Wood, was inspired by cellular structures and microscopic creatures, and Burnham brought these references into the atomic appearance of the characters. [20] It was an exercise-based show, with human performers inside costumes that span, grew and shrank, and retracted – and they were intentionally "ridiculous and silly" to keep child viewers entertained. [20]

In 2006, Burnham was costume designer for the BBC adaptation of The Wind in the Willows , starring Bob Hoskins and Matt Lucas. [21]

In The Night Garden... (2007–09) was a dreamworld of characters created by Andrew Davenport and Anne Wood, created using physical sets and actors, and complex special effects. Burnham acted as costume consultant to her frequent collaborator Tahra Zafar, and the pair worked to turn Davenport's drawings into real costumes. They incorporated animatronics and lighting technology, mounted on harnesses and backpacks. [19] The costume for Upsy Daisy was approximately seven feet tall, included hydraulics to move the skirt and a screen to aid visibility; it was so heavy that the actor only wore it for twenty minutes at a time. [22] [23]

Burnham created animal-based costumes for the CBeebies show ZingZillas (2010–12) was set on a tropical island, featuring a band of musical monkeys. The "breakfast-time hit" [24] explored different musical genres, and featured special musical guests. [25]

During this period, Burnham's company The Little Costume Shop also worked on television commercials, most notably creating costumes for McVitie's Penguin biscuits, for which she won the 2003 British Advertising Craft Award for Best Costume. [26]

Theatre design

In 2008, Vin Burnham re-united with costume designer James Acheson and Monty Python member Terry Jones, to design costumes for the opera adaptation of his book Evil Machines. Burnham designed household objects, such as irons and vacuum cleaners, as wearable costumes that weighed less than 7kg each and left the singers' chests unimpeded. [27]

The Living Dress

Lady Gaga wearing 'the living dress' on The Monster Ball Tour (2010) Gaga living dress.jpg
Lady Gaga wearing 'the living dress' on The Monster Ball Tour (2010)

In 2010, Vin Burnham was commissioned, via Jim Henson's Creature Shop and the Haus of Gaga, to design and construct the 'Living Dress', a robotic and LED-illuminated costume for the singer Lady Gaga's The Monster Ball Tour. [28] Burnham took inspiration from dance costume and haute couture, including Hussain Chalayan's gowns (Burnham collaborated with Chalayan's animatronics expert Adam Wright on the project). [29] [16] The realised costume was made of hundreds of plastic fans, mounted on armatures, that could open and close to resemble the wings of a firefly. [8] Performance theorists have highlighted Burnham's design and Gaga's performance of the Living Dress, as an innovative use of technology and a notable example of "serious play" in twenty-first century re-imaginings of camp. [29] [16] [30]

References

  1. ↑ d'Abo, Noel (2015-09-27). "Edward Burnham obituary". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2025-03-21.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Moss, Sylvia (2001). Costumes & chemistry: a comprehensive guide to materials and applications. New York: Costume & Fashion Press. p. 352. ISBN   978-0-89676-214-5.
  3. 1 2 "Vin Burnham". Muppet Wiki. Retrieved 2025-03-21.
  4. ↑ Klunder, Andy (1980), "Gloria", Victoria & Albert Museum, London, retrieved 2025-03-24
  5. ↑ Gilliam, Terry (1999). Christie, Ian (ed.). Gilliam on Gilliam. London: Faber & Faber. ISBN   978-0-571-20280-5.
  6. ↑ Larsen, Darl (2020). A Book about the Film Monty Python's The Meaning of Life: All the References from Americans to Zulu Nation. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN   978-1-5381-1597-8.
  7. 1 2 3 Finch, Christopher (1983). The Making of the Dark Crystal: creating a unique film. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. p. 94. ISBN   978-0-03-063332-4.
  8. 1 2 Wright, Mic. "The secrets of Lady Gaga's digital dress". Wired. ISSN   1059-1028 . Retrieved 2025-03-24.
  9. ↑ Wares, Paul (2009-11-27). "INTERVIEW: Vin Burnham". BATMAN ON FILM. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
  10. 1 2 Bell, Deborah, ed. (2015). Masquerade: essays on tradition and innovation worldwide. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. ISBN   978-1-4766-1804-3.
  11. ↑ Schoell, William (1991). Comic book heroes of the screen. New York: Carol Pub. Group. p. 110. ISBN   978-0-8065-1252-5.
  12. ↑ White, Taylor (Fall 1995). "Batman Returns". Imagi Movies: 40.
  13. 1 2 Macnabb, Matt (2016). Batman's Arsenal: An Unauthorised Encyclopaedic Chronicle. Opus Books. ISBN   9781623160746.
  14. ↑ Thompson, Douglas (1995). Pfeiffer: Beyond The Age of Innocence. London: Warner. p. 2. ISBN   978-0-7515-1030-0.
  15. ↑ Goodwin, Betty (1992-06-26). "Cartoon Couture". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
  16. 1 2 3 Ryan, Susan Elizabeth (2014-06-13). Garments of Paradise: Wearable Discourse in the Digital Age. The MIT Press. p. 181. doi:10.7551/mitpress/8873.001.0001. ISBN   978-0-262-32396-3.
  17. ↑ "'Lost in Space': Space Family Robinson Values, With Extra Glitter". archive.nytimes.com. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
  18. 1 2 3 Cadigan, Pat (1998). Making Lost in Space. Titan Books. ISBN   978-1852869069.
  19. 1 2 "From Harry Potter to Upsy Daisy: The costume maestro behind In the Night Garden Live". St Albans & Harpenden Review. 2019-02-27. Retrieved 2025-03-21.
  20. 1 2 Heffley, Lynne (2004-01-23). "The telly's new tubbies: Boohbahs". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-03-21.
  21. ↑ "BBC - Press Office - The Wind in the Willows: Cast list and production credits". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
  22. ↑ "They come in peace". The Telegraph. 2007-03-18. Retrieved 2025-03-21.
  23. ↑ Lane, Harriet (2007-11-25). "Night fever: How In The Night Garden became a TV fairytale". The Observer. ISSN   0029-7712 . Retrieved 2025-03-21.
  24. ↑ Deans, Jason (2010-04-28). "TV ratings: ZingZillas draws nearly 400,000". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2025-03-21.
  25. ↑ "BBC - Press Office - Network TV Programme Information BBC Week 14 ZingZillas Feature". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2025-03-21.
  26. ↑ "Just the Job". Marketing: 79. 10 April 2006.
  27. ↑ Kinnersley, Hannah Kate (Mar 2008). "No One Meaner Than A Vacuum Cleaner". Live Design. 42: 7–9.
  28. ↑ Honauer, Michaela (2017), Schneegass, Stefan; Amft, Oliver (eds.), "Designing (Inter)Active Costumes for Professional Stages", Smart Textiles: Fundamentals, Design, and Interaction, Human–Computer Interaction Series, Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 279–302, doi:10.1007/978-3-319-50124-6_13, ISBN   978-3-319-50124-6 , retrieved 2025-03-21
  29. 1 2 Horn, Katrin (2017), "Taking Pop Seriously: Lady Gaga as Camp", Women, Camp, and Popular Culture, Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 193–252, doi:10.1007/978-3-319-64846-0_5, ISBN   978-3-319-64845-3 , retrieved 2025-03-21
  30. ↑ Gray, Richard J., ed. (2012). The performance identities of Lady Gaga: critical essays. Jefferson, NC: McFarland. ISBN   978-0-7864-9252-7.
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