Shadow puppet head (male)

Technically, men’s head designs in shadow puppetry consist of blank faces and full faces. Cameo is generally used for male lead characters in order for their faces to appear unblemished. This is the so-called “clean look” in operas. An intaglio technique is applied to older characters such as painted-face characters and clownish characters (Jing and Chou). They are collectively known as “painted face” in operas. As in opera, the shadow puppet artist is highly adept at utilizing a wide range of engraving technique, colors, patterns to draw out the characteristics of the roles in the shadow puppet play and highlight their unique charm.