Skin Wars (2014–…): Season 3, Episode 1 - Episode #3.1 - full transcript
- In the intense world
- of competitive body painting,
you can either keep your cool,
or turn up the heat.
- It's a sizzling season three
of "Skin Wars."
The art of body painting
is more powerful than ever.
- 12 of the most talented artists
- from around the world
will push themselves
week after week...
- You painted your heart out.
- Aah!
- Proving who is brilliant
with a brush...
- Yeah!
- Just amazing.
- Loved it.
- Aah!
- I came here to win.
- And who can't
- handle the pressure.
- I'm freaking out.
- What?
- It's not fair.
- How dare you
disgrace this competition
with your bull****!
- Do you want to
leave the competition?
- In the end,
- the winner takes all...
- 100,000...
- 100,000 Gs, baby!
- And the ultimate title
of "Skin Wars" champion.
- So you guys ready for this?
- You guys excited?
- Yeah!
- Whoo!
- I've been waiting
- all my life for this.
- You got this, right?
- Great.
- This is gonna be very,
very fun.
I'm excited to see the house.
- Oh, I vowed
- I would never do that.
- All of us living together?
Whoo!
- Ah!
- All right.
- Uh-huh!
- Oh, my God!
- It seems to be like
- Mardi Gras.
Big ol' hair pieces,
and feathers, and flogs.
What is going on?
- Whoo!
Whoo! Ha ha.
- Oh!
- Whoo!
- Holy crap, this is really,
really, really happening.
- They're standing right there
- in front of me!
- Hello, painters!
- Whoo!
- We're celebrating season three
of "Skin Wars."
And we're so happy
to have you all here.
I'm your host, Rebecca Romijn.
- I'm kind of, like, lost.
- Know what I mean?
- I'm not sitting at home.
I'm not watching this on TV.
- I'm here.
- You excited?
Yes!
- So excited.
- So good.
- Our first judge
is a world champion
master body-painter.
Please welcome the guru
of body paint,
Craig Tracy.
- We want to see
- your absolute best,
and we will accept nothing less.
All right!
- Next is a trail blazer
in the body painting world,
and owner of the one and only
Skin City Body Painting
in Las Vegas,
Robin Slonina.
- Hi, everybody.
- Meeting Craig and then Robin
is like meeting, like, a Warhol,
- or meeting, like,
- a Salvador Dali to me.
Those are people that
I look up to.
It's just... it's insane.
- And finally,
welcome one of the most
iconic artists on Earth,
host of "RuPaul's Drag Race,"
the undeniable
queen of transformations,
RuPaul Charles.
- RuPaul is fabulous,
and for him to be
a judge on this show
is one of my biggest dreams.
- I am so excited
to be at the beginning
of the journey
that will take you
to places
you can't even imagine.
So, let's go.
- Thank you.
- Thank you.
- To start off,
the winner of "Skin Wars"
gets a trip the big dance,
the World Bodypainting Festival
in Austria.
- Yeah!
- Awesome!
- Whoo!
- And Bad Ass Stencils
- will create a custom
- line of stencils
with your name on it.
- Whoo!
- Nuh-uh!
- Sound good?
- Yes!
- Well, hold onto your brushes,
- because the winner
- will also receive
$100,000.
- Whoo!
- Whoo!
- $100,000?
What I would do for $100,000
in my life right now.
- It would be awesome to have
my own stencil line,
and I have never been
- to the World Bodypainting
- Championships,
and it's actually
- one of those things
- on my bucket list.
- Are you ready
to start your art?
Yes!
- These dancers are the models
for your first challenge.
- Yeah, that's what I'm
- talking about,
- you know, 'cause damn,
- these girls are hot.
I mean, they're hot.
- Each of you will be painting
a completely new costume
onto your assigned model.
The headpiece each of them
will be wearing
- will provide
- some initial inspiration,
and they'll be a part
of your finished design.
Your most important task
is to make your dancer stand out
and wow the judges.
This is a front and back design,
- and you can cover as much...
- Oh, nice.
- Or as little as you want.
- I can do that.
I work with circus performers.
- I make a costume for them
- every night.
Costume. Great. Got it.
- The winner of this challenge
will have an advantage later on
in the concept challenge.
You have just two hours
to complete this challenge.
Are you ready?
- Whoo!
- Yes!
- Yeah.
- Good.
Because your time starts...
now!
- I don't know.
Where do I go?
- Oh!
- Yes!
- What?
- Oh, yeah, baby.
It's nice.
Walking into the work room,
man... I've never had
anything like this before.
I grew up in the city
of Ciudad Juárez, Mexico.
Juárez is known for being
the playground for drug lords.
I grew up around guns,
but not around airbrush guns.
- Oh, how you doing, beauty?
- Whoo-hoo!
- Ready to get messy?
- Waited my whole life
- for this right here.
It's on now.
- Make sure I got enough pressure
- so I can spray.
- My name is Jermaze, but they
- call me "Blacc Jesus."
I'm a master airbrush artist.
My secret weapon is these hands.
- The gift of God.
- Right here.
I own Master Airbrush Shop
in Decatur, Georgia,
and I love doing portraits.
- Hold 'em out
- like this right here?
- Mm-hmm.
- It's very important
that I make
my presence known,
- so I'm looking to do
- a full body with the airbrush.
I'm here to win.
- Uh, my concept here is called
- "A Frequency Princess."
- Every human being on this planet
- has an aura field on they body,
- and I want to be able
- to express that
with vibrant colors.
- I've got Jermaze next to me,
- and I see him
- going for full body,
- and I'm like,
- "Wow, dude.
- Good luck."
Like, that's a lot to cover
in two hours.
- I wonder how much detail
- you're gonna be able
to get in on that time.
- I think I have a pretty good
view with apparel,
just because I used to work
at a clothing store.
- I'm Kyera.
- I'm 24 years old.
I'm from Virginia.
- I became a face and
- body painter
when I was 17 years old.
I did a theatrical makeup class
and through that, I interned
with a face painter,
and I found my passion.
I'm looking at this headdress,
and I see the heart rhinestone,
and so I want
to incorporate that.
I just try to, like,
- do all those
- little fine details.
The top people in the game
are actually judging me now,
so I have to step it up.
- I am working on
the seafoam princess of Brazil.
Okay.
Let me see your front.
My name's Alison, I'm 44,
and I live in Grass Valley,
California.
- I live with my husband
- and my little boy.
I am the primary breadwinner,
and I do
a little bit of everything
to make money for the house.
- Face painting,
- kids' birthday parties
as Penney the Clown,
and body painting.
- We're already at
an hour and a half!
Time's ticking away!
- No way! Holy crap!
- That's it!
- I'm thinking about, um,
Brazil, and all their dancers
that they have,
and so I'm using really,
really bright colors.
My name is Tiffany.
I am from Rock Hill,
South Carolina.
My body painting's
the best thing in my life.
One of the reasons why
my ex-husband and I divorced
was because I felt like
- he was never there
- to support my art.
Since then, I've been
financially on my own,
and I have been
struggling to get by.
I don't even know
what the advantage is
except that I'm gonna win it.
- I have the holiday
- Simchat Torah going on
- in my head,
which is all about, like,
starting the reading
of the Torah--Bible--over again,
and the first story
is the creation story.
I grew up as an Orthodox Jew.
The lifestyle is strict.
- When it comes to
- the body painting,
I try to keep it away
from my brothers
because it's a modesty issue.
It's kind of weird having them
not be able to see what I do,
but they support me
like I respect them.
- Halfway there, everyone!
- Yeah.
- I'm looking around, I'm seeing
everybody else's pieces,
and I'm feeling, like, nervous.
See what we got.
You know what?
- Let's go.
- Game is on.
- Hey, Alison,
- your piece looks really nice.
- Likewise!
- My name is Luis.
I am 21 years old, and
I'm from Atlanta, Georgia.
- My model has
- a bright white headdress
with prismatic rhinestones,
and that's what motivated
my whole entire
inspiration for the piece.
- I've traveled
- with a circus before.
I'm a professional clown.
I know exactly
what goes into a costume.
- Where a lot of shimmer
- has to go
to be glamorized on a stage.
I just have to bring my forte.
- Guys, we have one minute!
One minute left, everyone!
- Oh, no!
- Aah!
- All right, painters.
That's it. Time's up.
Put your tools down.
- Whoo!
- Wow!
- Incredible.
- Everybody feeling all right?
Yeah.
- Judges can't wait
- to see your work,
so follow me to the stage.
- At this point,
- all I'm worried about
is winning the first challenges,
because that's how you shine.
That's how you stand out.
That's what this is about.
- So painters,
- we can't wait to see
these costumes you've created
for these dancers.
- When the dancers come out,
my model pops out from the rest.
100%.
Vibrant, shiny,
- and it's boom in your faces,
- right there.
Like, it's not going anywhere.
- Okay, painters, it's time
- for the judges
- to take a closer look.
- I think we're starting
- with Tiffany.
- Hi.
- How are you?
- I'm doing well, thank you.
- So Tiffany, what's your style?
- We did her, um,
as Brazilian dance.
I didn't want to leave
anything too tight.
- I wanted to leave it
- really, really loose
- and the lines really fun
- to play with
so that you can have
that dancey motion.
- Okay.
- Thank you, Tiffany.
- Thank you very much.
- I call this "Bereishis."
It means "In the beginning."
- For me, the holiday
- that has the most dance
is Simchat Torah,
- so I picked the fifth day
- of creation
because it has
the whimsical bird
and the fish.
- You've got
such a nice connection
of you and the model
together in the piece.
- Thank you very much.
- I'm a professional clown,
so, being a performer
for a circus,
you have to have lots of bling,
especially from far away.
So I pretty much put that
into this piece.
- I have to say, can see
that you come from that world.
- Well, my first name
- is Jermaze,
- but typically, they call me
- "Blacc Jesus."
- Your mother calls you
- "Blacc Jesus"?
- She does.
- Is she "Blacc Mary"?
- You went head to toe.
You went deep.
- Yes.
- Did you consider, maybe,
not doing full body?
- I wanted to go ahead
- and go for it
because I know you gotta go hard
or go home here.
- How'd you get that opacity
of the color there?
- I'm not sure,
- everyone asks me that,
- and it's just how it comes out
- when I do it.
- I don't know.
- Well, no.
- Usually, when people are
- heavy-handed, it cracks.
- There's no cracking
- there--well,
there's a little crack there.
- One of the things
- that I noticed
- was you're
- one of the only people
- that has given some attention
- below the knees.
- Gladiator sandals?
- I would love to wear
- some shoes like that.
- All right. Thank you, Alison.
- Thank you.
- Right here, we have--I have
the Phoenix.
I didn't want a uniform piece.
I wanted to kind of chop it up.
- What kind of painting
- background do you have?
- Industrial paint.
- A different type
- of body work.
This is much more fun.
- Interesting choice
to have a chain up here.
- I was born and raised
- on a farm.
- Started off painting tractors.
- All right.
- Thank you, Otto.
- Thank you very much.
- I wanted to typically go with
the stylistic costume
that they were dancing in first,
and so I definitely wanted
to show my style
- right here with the detail,
- and they had
- a lot of dangly glitters all
- over the place.
- What was your biggest
challenge in this piece?
- Just having it, um,
move fluidly around the body,
- and just wanted it to make it
- really beautiful
as she, like, turned around.
- Great. Thank you, Kyera.
- Thank you.
- So what'd you think
- about all the artwork?
- Coming from Vegas,
- I felt right at home,
and I feel like everybody did
a really great job.
- My standout was Alison.
I liked that it was
a balance of
the playing it safe,
- but going
- that little bit of extra
with the way she did the, uh,
bottom, below the knee, yeah.
- Those gladiator sandals
were gorgeous.
- One of my favorites was Luis.
You know, when they were
all on stage,
my eye went straight there.
It was a costume that was
very, very well done,
and it had great details.
It was very authentic.
It was fun.
- I love what Shelley did.
Tremendous color.
- There were highlights.
- There were details.
It kept my eye flowing.
And then there was contrast
between the back and the front.
- It's also festive,
- and these girls
are wearing festive headpieces.
- You know, I-I liked Tiffany.
- Uh-huh?
- You know, she was using
a lot of
stylized brushwork that
you frequently see
in the face painting community.
She had a really nice balance,
really nice symmetry.
- Okay, well have you
picked a winner?
- I think we got it.
- Absolutely.
- Hello, painters.
- Hello.
- Hi.
- You had two hours
- to paint a costume
- on your model.
Now we're going to see
- who impressed the judges
- the most.
The top three painters
of this challenge are...
Shelley.
Luis.
And Alison.
- Congratulations,
- you're the top three painters.
- What, what?
My heart is in my throat
and my pulse is racing.
Oh, my gosh.
I'm up here
in the top three!
- The judges
have chosen a winner.
And the winner is...
Alison!
- I am genuinely stunned
when I see
my seafoam samba princess
- come walking through
- those curtains.
Yay!
- Alison, congratulations!
- I really did not expect this.
- Alison, the attention
to detail was so apparent,
and your self-expression
was really lovely.
- Thank you.
- Congratulations, Alison.
Because you are the winner,
- you've just secured yourself
- an advantage
in the next challenge.
- Yay!
- Okay, painters.
Please step over to this side
of the stage.
In the first challenge,
we celebrated the 12 of you
and the start of
another incredible season
of "Skin Wars."
In this next challenge,
you'll be putting your spin
on the greatest celebrations
from around the world.
As you can see,
I have my paint can.
One by one, I'll pull
a brush from the can
with a painter's name attached.
That painter will be assigned
the celebration that appears
next on the screen.
Michael, you're up first.
- Mardi Gras.
- Mardi Gras!
Rick.
Chinese New Year.
- Ooh.
- Tiffany.
Midsummer Festival.
- Celebrated in Sweden.
- Aw.
I am so excited about that one.
- Brittney. St. Patrick's Day!
- Oh!
- Jessica.
Holi, the festival of color
from India and Nepal.
- I'm really looking forward
- to that one.
I'm really relieved.
I do know what Holi is.
- They have a paint fight.
- It's colorful.
I can work with that.
- Kyera.
Independence Day.
Commemorating America's freedom.
- Otto.
- Oh, boy.
- Yi Peng Lantern Festival
in Thailand.
Do you know what that is, Otto?
- Nope.
- Okay.
Luis.
Oktoberfest!
Alison.
- Heritage Day.
- Ooh.
- Celebrating South African
cultural diversity.
Jermaze.
Up Helly Aa,
the winter time fire festival
in Scotland.
- Seriously?
I don't know nothing about
the Helly Aa festival.
- Shelley.
The White Nights festival,
Russia's annual cultural event.
Hans?
Dia De Los Muertos.
- Aw!
- All right!
- Sounds like everyone's
jealous of that one.
- Alison, you won
- the first challenge,
which means you get an advantage
in the next challenge.
- Whoo-hoo!
- You can keep the celebration
you've been assigned,
or you can trade
with one of your competitors.
- I'm gonna trade.
- You're gonna trade. Okay.
You have Heritage Day
in South Africa.
Which other celebration
would you like to have?
- My great-grandparents
- came over
on the boat from Sweden,
so I thought it would be
more artistically challenging
to do the Midsummer Festival
in Sweden.
- Bring it.
Bring it on, Alison.
- This is a head-to-toe,
360-degree design,
and you have just five hours
to complete your painting.
No pressure, right?
- Okay.
- We can do it.
- When you get
- to your work stations,
- you'll find headpieces
- to go along
with each celebration
for some added inspiration,
and they'll be a part
of your finished design.
- All right.
- Thank you!
- Good night, painters!
- Oh, you're using contacts!
- You bet I am, dear sir.
- You going hard today, huh?
- It's go hard or go home.
- That is true.
- Mine!
I'm excited to have Mardi Gras.
Craig Tracy is from
New Orleans,
so I have to make him like it.
- Luis. What's your name?
- Brandy.
- You're gonna be
- Miss Independence Day.
- Yay!
- Ready to roll?
- Yeah.
- All right.
- All right.
- Yeah, you take it off, and
- we gonna get started.
After this first challenge,
- this is all or nothing
- right now,
- and I'm gonna bring
- my big guns this time.
- Pull out my airbrush again
- this time,
and I'm going to get ready
to try something new.
- For the first time,
- I'm getting ready
- to try a paint brush,
- 'cause I want these judges
to know that I'm not just
an airbrush artist,
I'm an artist altogether,
and I can handle anything
that you give to me.
I'm here to take risks.
Make it pop!
They don't see it coming.
So they won't ****.
I gotta bring my A-game.
If I don't?
Hey, I could be possibly
eliminated.
This is it!
- Whoa, Michael.
- You're way ahead of me!
- You were ahead of us
- yesterday.
- I....
Our concept challenge is
celebrations around the world.
I'm working on
Midsummer's Festival,
from Sweden, celebrating
the sun and the long days,
because the nights are
so freakin' long in Sweden,
so I want to have
the day conquering the night.
- I want to incorporate
- blue and yellow
because that's the color
of the Swedish flag.
- This'll work.
- Yang--or, Yi Peng.
The Lantern Festival.
It's a festival in Thailand.
I've never been to Thailand.
I'm from Wisconsin.
I'm country.
I do industrial paint.
But I got all these
different ideas.
I want a nice dark sky
with a nice, deep, dark blue,
and I want the starry night.
- I want to make sure
- all the stars are in there.
I just got to get it done.
- This is gonna be
- a really good, fun one for me.
- Yeah?
- I actually had
- another one at first,
and then the person
that won the challenge--
- They switched?
- They took mine away.
My new celebration
is African Heritage Day,
and I happen to love
African culture.
I'm thinking giraffes, lions,
dancing, I'm thinking of drums.
I'm like, "I got this."
- My festival is
the Up Helly Aa.
It's a day thousands of people
marched down the street.
They burned stuff up,
and my design is fire and iron.
- I know that Scotland
- is known for iron.
And Vikings.
So I'm thinking, in my mind,
let's go with a Viking.
- I am feeling a little bit
stressed for time right now.
- The thought of somebody
- going home today
is really sad, but you know,
- that's the name of the game,
- and that's how it's played,
so I got to play the game.
- Guys, one hour left!
Whoo!
- I know.
- My name is Michael.
I am from Queens, New York.
I'm recognized and known
for my hyper-real art.
I am painting, and
I'm having a blast.
- Like that. That looks good.
- Like more loose.
- It's so much fun and chill,
and like,
I'm so confident with my work.
- and I look around,
- and I'm actually
feeling a bit disappointed
in all the other painters.
- I see all these
- basic bitch designs.
My piece is
definitely the best.
- Getting Fourth of July,
- I feel like,
- with design concept,
it could be cliché,
and so I knew that
it was gonna be a challenge
to incorporate a lot of things
and details
to have it stand out
amongst the other celebrations.
I planned a lot of things
that were very straightforward,
not really party.
Doesn't seem as festive
as I need it to be,
so I'm worried.
I quit my job to come out here.
There's no turning back,
so I need to be the one to win.
- Five minutes only.
Five minutes left.
- Aah!
- Yeah?
- I put a lot of time
with the paintbrush,
- so I'm thinking, like,
- "Come on, Blacc,
- "you gotta get back
- on this airbrush piece
- 'cause you don't have
- but so much time left."
- And I got to do something
- on my face.
- I can't just leave the face
- just naked,
so last minute,
paint her face silver,
and I put some black
in the eye.
I hope that it's enough.
- As I'm looking
- around the room,
Jermaze, I just feel like
his piece wasn't up to par.
His fire doesn't have
the level of detail
and realism that it should,
and I'm really worried
about him right now.
- My fear is, like,
to show up on stage,
- and like, the piece
- not to be final,
and not to be finished, and...
God, that would be a nightmare.
- Painters, that's it!
- Time's up!
Put your tools down!
- You're so pretty!
- Wow!
It's a party!
- So you ready for the judges
- to see your work?
Yes.
- Well they are waiting for you
- over on the main stage.
Follow me over.
- When time's up,
- I'm looking at other peoples',
- and I'm thinking, "Wow."
- Whoo!
- "Theirs looks really good
- with their headpiece."
At this point, I don't know
- where I stand
- in the competition.
- Let's go.
- You ready?
- Hello, painters.
Hi.
- You had five hours
to create a design inspired by
celebrations from
around the world.
In the end,
there will be one winner,
and one of you
will be going home.
Okay.
Let the party begin!
- Oh, my God, my piece actually
looks so good!
I am loving her.
Colors are so bright and poppy,
and my little leprechaun.
- I really love him
- peeking through.
He's one of my favorite pieces.
Who doesn't love a little gold?
- I really like the composition
that I chose to do.
I feel like it flatters
the African culture.
I feel like it has movement,
it flows.
She looks tall and regal.
- She looks like
- that Nubian queen
that I really wanted.
- I love the beer on her chest.
That was my favorite part.
- I probably should have
- done it bigger
to emphasize beer.
- One thing I would have
- definitely changed,
- that green apron,
- I would have done--
the plaid did not
work in my favor.
But overall,
I was very happy with it.
- Whoo!
- Yes!
- My model looks amazing,
and I'm super stoked
with the three different
masks on the hands.
And painted five masks,
two on the model's butt cheek,
- and they're making out
- with each other,
and then there's two others
on the model's arms,
and so when she opens her arms,
the mouths open.
It's clever, it's smart,
it's funny.
- I know I did a complete,
balanced piece.
The red is flowing
and the contrast is popping.
- The silver matches
- the headdress,
it ties it all in.
- The ballerina slippers
- wrap around,
- they bring
- the whole piece together.
- Now I have to sell it
- to the judges
and make sure that
they see what I see.
- I watch my model
walk onto the stage,
and I'm feeling really
confident and happy,
because she does look
like she's been
in a paint fight.
- And then, looking at
- the different elements
- and going,
- "Okay, all right."
- It's a very, very
- strong piece.
It's great.
- I know that the judges
are gonna have
a high bar for me
and expect a lot from me.
By the time my model is
walking out on stage,
and I see it from a distance,
- oh, my gosh, my piece
- actually looks beautiful.
I love my rays of sunshine
and my nighttime.
I'm so glad
that I switched my festival.
Now I'm gonna win this.
["Battle Hymn of the Republic"
- The model's walking out,
and I have no idea
how I did.
I am making the flag
flow around the body.
There's fireworks.
On the hip, I put the 13 stars,
- representing
- how we started off,
and I really hope
they love my eagle.
- At this time, I'm happy
with what I did.
- I know I could have
- made the Buddha
- a little bit bigger,
- maybe I could have
made him more serious,
but I tried to use
a little creative aspect
by putting the lanterns
on her arms.
I love the reflection
of the moonlight
off the mountains
into the waters.
- I'm feeling good.
I worked so hard on my piece.
I'm feeling
very confident right now.
My favorite part is the front,
- where the roses are
- in a triptych.
I did the classical sugar skull
for the face.
- Here where
- the clavicle bone is,
I turned into
the offering table.
This is gonna be my victory.
- With my piece,
I covered a whole full body,
I only used my airbrush
towards the end.
- I specifically love the texture
- that I put in.
- I'm really satisfied right now,
- I am.
- I'm feeling good.
- I mean, overall,
I'm really happy
with the body paint.
I like the way
the dragon flows with my model
and then wraps around her.
Makes me feel good.
Wow!
- Whoo!
- Whoo-hoo!
- Wow, painters!
You took us
on a round-the-world celebration
- and we didn't even need
- a passport.
That was amazing.
You've given the judges
a lot to talk about.
- But first,
- they'd like to ask you
some questions about your work.
Okay, Brittney, tell us about
- your celebration
- and your painting.
- Basically, I just--
- I wanted to have
- a lot of fun with this
- because I wanted to show
- a little bit of my personality
within my piece itself.
- I'm just trying
- to wrap my head around it.
- What is--can you
- turn your model around?
- Sure.
- Why is your leprechaun, like,
got his butt out
with the little skirt flown up?
- Because I'm always
fascinated--
I love the fact that men
actually wear kilts,
and I always hear
that underneath the kilt,
they're not wearing underwear.
You can appreciate a man
with a good back, right?
- Absolutely.
- Michael.
You're up.
- My celebration was Mardi Gras,
and they have three
representative colors:
purple for justice,
green for faith,
and gold for power,
- and so I decided to stick to
- those colors
for my painting.
And so, for the back,
I just had different masks
interacting with each other,
and the first thing I did was
paint sperm onto my model.
- Oh, man.
- So the back is a big
spermatozoa orgasm.
- Yeah, it's like the
Mardi Gras mask of fertility.
- It's definitely intriguing.
- Okay, Jermaze.
Your turn.
- I wanted to have power
with my piece
because fire is a power element.
- What you're looking at
- right here
is texture, symmetry.
- I do love
- the shoulder pieces.
They actually do look like iron.
- This is a fire festival,
and when I'm looking
at your model,
those flames, to me?
That's not great rendering.
There's not a lot of detail
as far as the flames go.
- Okay.
- And then that--that face?
- Yes.
- Man, there's a little bit more
you could have done there.
You know?
- All right, Tiffany.
Your turn.
- So, my celebration
was South African Heritage Day,
and in the culture,
they wear tons of masks.
They love the animals,
and they incorporate that
in tons of the artwork
that they have as well.
- Tiffany, it truly represents
a festival in its flair,
color, design, detail.
- You took the most
Anglo-Saxon model in the world,
and turned her into Shaka Zulu.
This is stunning.
- Aw, thank you.
Thank you, thank you.
- Well, I think
- that a lot of us
- are familiar with
- the Day of the Dead.
The loved one has been buried.
When they are laid to rest,
people obviously throw roses,
and on the back here,
as the spirit leaves the skull,
we see the sun set
and we fade into blackness.
- You were very thoughtful
in your composition.
It's simple,
but it's effective.
- You're doing a good job
explaining things,
but, um,
I expected more from you.
There are elements that I love,
and there are some things
that I'm not thrilled about,
especially on the back.
It doesn't say
"Mexican holiday."
It--it doesn't fit into
the rest of it.
- Oh, man.
- Is this really
- happening right now?
- And then your sunset--
- I thought it was a full moon.
- I--yeah, the back,
a little neglected,
a little stepchild.
- Wow.
I'm kind of speechless.
- Thank you, Hans.
- And I do not want to be
the first person to leave
on a concept so easy.
- Okay, Alison.
You're up.
- I do like
- the focal point here.
From a distance, I was having
trouble seeing it,
- but, you know, when I got close,
- I was like,
"Oh, yeah, that is a, you know,
really beautiful,
effective focal point."
- I want to know, what's with
the little magical--
- I almost forgot!
- I'm not gonna let you forget.
- My tomten!
These are little guys
in Swedish folklore,
- and they're sort of like
- little gnomes.
- I'm interested about
the daytime
overtaking the night.
It still seems to be
way more night than daytime.
- This was, you know,
- daytime with clouds,
but my blue, I think,
came out a little darker.
- This was meant
- to be the night here,
and then all of this was day.
- Okay, Rick.
Your turn.
- First of all,
- it's a spiritual journey
of, like, experiencing death
and a rebirth type of style.
- And of course,
- I wanted to throw some,
like, a festive style of art
with the fireworks on top
and just make it just feel
- like a whole party on her,
- you know?
- All right, Rick.
There's a lot
that makes me smile here.
- Wanted to see a little bit more
- highlights and shadows,
but your design elements
are right on the money.
- You're going really dark,
- and we're starting
- to lose things,
so just keep that in mind.
- All right.
- Okay, Luis.
You're up.
- My festival is Oktoberfest.
It originally started
before 1811.
It was when Price Ludwig
and Princess Therese
got married,
and he supplied, like,
a bunch of beer,
so that was, pretty much,
the inspiration,
and it's in October,
so it's like fall, so maybe
- some of the leaves falling
- into the beer and stuff--
- I don't like
- leaves in my beer.
- But yeah--like, okay, but
- think about it this way:
- Like, what if you walk outside
- and you're, like,
- under a tree, and you're, like,
- having a conversation,
and like a leaf falls in?
- I got to tell you:
that beer on the front
- looks delicious--
- Mm-hmm.
- And that pretzel--man,
I want to bite the hell
out of that pretzel!
- Okay, Kyera.
Your turn.
- You definitely incorporated
a lot conceptually.
I wish that, technically,
- everything was
- up to the standard
of the beautiful eagle
on the back.
That eagle is just so
beautifully painted
and well-rendered,
it makes the rest of it
just look not as sharp.
- Is there anything
- that you wish
you had put on that you didn't?
- I really wanted to put in
the Statue of Liberty,
um, and so I think
I kind of got that
royal statue in her face.
- Thank you, painters.
The judges have a very tough
decision to make.
Please head back to the lounge.
- So, judges.
Which paintings
did you really like?
- I went gaga over Tiffany.
Her piece really encompassed
everything that that festival
had to offer and more.
- That girl understands color.
- Michael was exquisite.
Those colors could have easily
turned into a muddy heap
in the Mississippi delta.
- The front and the back
were so different,
- and yet it all just
- flowed together
really harmoniously.
- Yeah.
- With Brittney, you know,
I really loved
the St. Patrick's Day.
- If you've ever tried to paint
a straight line
on a human body,
it is crazy hard,
but she pulled it off.
- I gotta say, I was
disappointed in Alison.
- I know that
- she was trying to have
the daytime overcome
the nighttime.
I just felt more nighttime.
It felt uneven.
- Well, the palate, too.
- You know, her colors were
- all over the place.
- Yes.
- Yes.
So, let's go to Jermaze now.
- I like his use of color.
- Hmm.
- It was symmetric.
- He's got the boldness,
but maybe not that detail.
That fire looked like something
- I'd see in
- a third grade classroom.
- You're absolutely right.
- His fire didn't
- bring the heat, honey.
- Blacc Jesus did not
cause any miracles--
- No, there were no miracles
- here today.
- Here on "Skin Wars."
- No, no.
Hans, even though
he filled the criteria,
it just was, "Eh. Meh."
- Orange booty.
- I thought it was a pumpkin.
- Yeah, I did too.
- Yeah.
- I was really disappointed
with Kyera's Independence Day.
You know, the flag was cool,
but when you got up close,
you know, it wasn't
very cleanly rendered,
and I think she saved the best
and stuck it
on the back shoulder,
that beautiful eagle.
- That should have been
- the focal point.
- Color, energy, flow,
all of that matters.
You can't just throw paint
on a model
and say,
"Walk the runway, darling."
- Luis.
Otto.
Shelley.
Rick.
Jess.
Alison.
Congratulations.
You are safe.
You may head back to the lounge.
That means the rest of you
make up the top three
and the bottom three.
Brittney.
Michael.
And Tiffany.
Congratulations,
you are the top three.
- Please step forward.
Brittney.
You're safe.
- You can leave
- the elimination stage.
- Thank you, guys.
Appreciate it.
- Michael, your painting
was both regal
and elegant,
- and your interpretation
- of Mardi Gras
was spot-on.
Whoo.
- Great work.
- Thank you.
- Tiffany, your painting
encompassed everything
- that the festival
- was meant to be,
and your use of color
absolutely blew me away.
- Thank you so much.
- Michael.
Tiffany.
The winner of
this challenge is...
- This is my chance to prove
I have what it takes to be here
in the top.
I want this so bad.
- Michael.
Tiffany.
We were all very impressed
with your work today,
but only one of you
can be the winner
of this challenge.
The winner of
this challenge is...
- Tiffany.
- Congratulations!
- You're the winner!
- Aah! Whoo!
- Yeah.
- Hey.
- Congratulations.
- Nice. Thank you guys.
Thank you so much.
- The spirit in your work
shows exactly
what great body painting
fierce, fun,
and fearless.
Aw, thank you.
- Great job, Tiffany.
- You and Michael can head
- back to the lounge.
- Thank you.
- Thank you.
- Like, how great is that,
- to be the first winner of, like,
- the huge challenge
on "Skin Wars"?
- Aah!
- People are gonna remember that!
- Yay!
- Yay!
- Jermaze.
Kyera.
Hans.
One of you
will be going home tonight.
Hans?
You're safe.
You may head back to the lounge.
- Wow.
- Thank God.
It's important for me to stay
because I haven't had a chance
to show anyone my talent yet.
- Jermaze and Kyera.
- That means you're
- the bottom two,
and one of you is going home.
- I can't breathe
at this point.
I've worked so hard,
and I can't leave first.
- Jermaze, your painting had
some terrific symmetry,
but at the same time,
it lacked some creativity
and you just didn't
bring that fire
to the fire.
- Kyera, there were
strengths in your work,
like that beautifully-rendered
eagle,
but there were
some technical issues,
and your composition was just
a little bit off.
- Kyera.
You're safe for now.
Thank you so much.
- You can leave
- the elimination stage.
- Thank you.
- Jermaze, the resurrection
is meaningless
without the crucifixion.
We will see you rise.
- Thank you so much
for allowing me
to bless the world.
- Jermaze, please
go wash off your canvass.
- Blacc Jesus.
- I was chosen
out of thousands of people
and I made it top 12.
- Oh!
- Good-bye.
It's all right.
Even though I'm not a top,
world-renowned body painter,
from this point, the only way to
go is up from here.
But whoever wins the $100,000,
give me a call, because--
Let's go have some fun,
all right?
"Skin Wars" season three
- was the nucleus
- of this new beginning,
- and the whole world
- will know my name now,
because I am the airbrush king.
- This season
on "Skin Wars"...
You're going to
the Aquarium of the Pacific.
I am very impressed here.
Yes!
- A toy store!
- You just woke the **** up.
- There's gonna be a pageant!
- My model looks hot.
- Wait a minute.
That's not a woman.
- That was a stroke of genius.
- Please welcome
Jillian Rose Reed.
Kandee Johnson.
Adrienne Bailon.
Kristin Gearhart.
Shawn Johnson.
Samantha Harris.
- Wow!
- Is this gonna be easy?
No, it's not gonna be easy!
- I didn't come here
- to make friends.
- I came here
- to take that money home.
- You need to check your ego.
- What?
- No!
- I'm freaking out.
- Get out!
- of competitive body painting,
you can either keep your cool,
or turn up the heat.
- It's a sizzling season three
of "Skin Wars."
The art of body painting
is more powerful than ever.
- 12 of the most talented artists
- from around the world
will push themselves
week after week...
- You painted your heart out.
- Aah!
- Proving who is brilliant
with a brush...
- Yeah!
- Just amazing.
- Loved it.
- Aah!
- I came here to win.
- And who can't
- handle the pressure.
- I'm freaking out.
- What?
- It's not fair.
- How dare you
disgrace this competition
with your bull****!
- Do you want to
leave the competition?
- In the end,
- the winner takes all...
- 100,000...
- 100,000 Gs, baby!
- And the ultimate title
of "Skin Wars" champion.
- So you guys ready for this?
- You guys excited?
- Yeah!
- Whoo!
- I've been waiting
- all my life for this.
- You got this, right?
- Great.
- This is gonna be very,
very fun.
I'm excited to see the house.
- Oh, I vowed
- I would never do that.
- All of us living together?
Whoo!
- Ah!
- All right.
- Uh-huh!
- Oh, my God!
- It seems to be like
- Mardi Gras.
Big ol' hair pieces,
and feathers, and flogs.
What is going on?
- Whoo!
Whoo! Ha ha.
- Oh!
- Whoo!
- Holy crap, this is really,
really, really happening.
- They're standing right there
- in front of me!
- Hello, painters!
- Whoo!
- We're celebrating season three
of "Skin Wars."
And we're so happy
to have you all here.
I'm your host, Rebecca Romijn.
- I'm kind of, like, lost.
- Know what I mean?
- I'm not sitting at home.
I'm not watching this on TV.
- I'm here.
- You excited?
Yes!
- So excited.
- So good.
- Our first judge
is a world champion
master body-painter.
Please welcome the guru
of body paint,
Craig Tracy.
- We want to see
- your absolute best,
and we will accept nothing less.
All right!
- Next is a trail blazer
in the body painting world,
and owner of the one and only
Skin City Body Painting
in Las Vegas,
Robin Slonina.
- Hi, everybody.
- Meeting Craig and then Robin
is like meeting, like, a Warhol,
- or meeting, like,
- a Salvador Dali to me.
Those are people that
I look up to.
It's just... it's insane.
- And finally,
welcome one of the most
iconic artists on Earth,
host of "RuPaul's Drag Race,"
the undeniable
queen of transformations,
RuPaul Charles.
- RuPaul is fabulous,
and for him to be
a judge on this show
is one of my biggest dreams.
- I am so excited
to be at the beginning
of the journey
that will take you
to places
you can't even imagine.
So, let's go.
- Thank you.
- Thank you.
- To start off,
the winner of "Skin Wars"
gets a trip the big dance,
the World Bodypainting Festival
in Austria.
- Yeah!
- Awesome!
- Whoo!
- And Bad Ass Stencils
- will create a custom
- line of stencils
with your name on it.
- Whoo!
- Nuh-uh!
- Sound good?
- Yes!
- Well, hold onto your brushes,
- because the winner
- will also receive
$100,000.
- Whoo!
- Whoo!
- $100,000?
What I would do for $100,000
in my life right now.
- It would be awesome to have
my own stencil line,
and I have never been
- to the World Bodypainting
- Championships,
and it's actually
- one of those things
- on my bucket list.
- Are you ready
to start your art?
Yes!
- These dancers are the models
for your first challenge.
- Yeah, that's what I'm
- talking about,
- you know, 'cause damn,
- these girls are hot.
I mean, they're hot.
- Each of you will be painting
a completely new costume
onto your assigned model.
The headpiece each of them
will be wearing
- will provide
- some initial inspiration,
and they'll be a part
of your finished design.
Your most important task
is to make your dancer stand out
and wow the judges.
This is a front and back design,
- and you can cover as much...
- Oh, nice.
- Or as little as you want.
- I can do that.
I work with circus performers.
- I make a costume for them
- every night.
Costume. Great. Got it.
- The winner of this challenge
will have an advantage later on
in the concept challenge.
You have just two hours
to complete this challenge.
Are you ready?
- Whoo!
- Yes!
- Yeah.
- Good.
Because your time starts...
now!
- I don't know.
Where do I go?
- Oh!
- Yes!
- What?
- Oh, yeah, baby.
It's nice.
Walking into the work room,
man... I've never had
anything like this before.
I grew up in the city
of Ciudad Juárez, Mexico.
Juárez is known for being
the playground for drug lords.
I grew up around guns,
but not around airbrush guns.
- Oh, how you doing, beauty?
- Whoo-hoo!
- Ready to get messy?
- Waited my whole life
- for this right here.
It's on now.
- Make sure I got enough pressure
- so I can spray.
- My name is Jermaze, but they
- call me "Blacc Jesus."
I'm a master airbrush artist.
My secret weapon is these hands.
- The gift of God.
- Right here.
I own Master Airbrush Shop
in Decatur, Georgia,
and I love doing portraits.
- Hold 'em out
- like this right here?
- Mm-hmm.
- It's very important
that I make
my presence known,
- so I'm looking to do
- a full body with the airbrush.
I'm here to win.
- Uh, my concept here is called
- "A Frequency Princess."
- Every human being on this planet
- has an aura field on they body,
- and I want to be able
- to express that
with vibrant colors.
- I've got Jermaze next to me,
- and I see him
- going for full body,
- and I'm like,
- "Wow, dude.
- Good luck."
Like, that's a lot to cover
in two hours.
- I wonder how much detail
- you're gonna be able
to get in on that time.
- I think I have a pretty good
view with apparel,
just because I used to work
at a clothing store.
- I'm Kyera.
- I'm 24 years old.
I'm from Virginia.
- I became a face and
- body painter
when I was 17 years old.
I did a theatrical makeup class
and through that, I interned
with a face painter,
and I found my passion.
I'm looking at this headdress,
and I see the heart rhinestone,
and so I want
to incorporate that.
I just try to, like,
- do all those
- little fine details.
The top people in the game
are actually judging me now,
so I have to step it up.
- I am working on
the seafoam princess of Brazil.
Okay.
Let me see your front.
My name's Alison, I'm 44,
and I live in Grass Valley,
California.
- I live with my husband
- and my little boy.
I am the primary breadwinner,
and I do
a little bit of everything
to make money for the house.
- Face painting,
- kids' birthday parties
as Penney the Clown,
and body painting.
- We're already at
an hour and a half!
Time's ticking away!
- No way! Holy crap!
- That's it!
- I'm thinking about, um,
Brazil, and all their dancers
that they have,
and so I'm using really,
really bright colors.
My name is Tiffany.
I am from Rock Hill,
South Carolina.
My body painting's
the best thing in my life.
One of the reasons why
my ex-husband and I divorced
was because I felt like
- he was never there
- to support my art.
Since then, I've been
financially on my own,
and I have been
struggling to get by.
I don't even know
what the advantage is
except that I'm gonna win it.
- I have the holiday
- Simchat Torah going on
- in my head,
which is all about, like,
starting the reading
of the Torah--Bible--over again,
and the first story
is the creation story.
I grew up as an Orthodox Jew.
The lifestyle is strict.
- When it comes to
- the body painting,
I try to keep it away
from my brothers
because it's a modesty issue.
It's kind of weird having them
not be able to see what I do,
but they support me
like I respect them.
- Halfway there, everyone!
- Yeah.
- I'm looking around, I'm seeing
everybody else's pieces,
and I'm feeling, like, nervous.
See what we got.
You know what?
- Let's go.
- Game is on.
- Hey, Alison,
- your piece looks really nice.
- Likewise!
- My name is Luis.
I am 21 years old, and
I'm from Atlanta, Georgia.
- My model has
- a bright white headdress
with prismatic rhinestones,
and that's what motivated
my whole entire
inspiration for the piece.
- I've traveled
- with a circus before.
I'm a professional clown.
I know exactly
what goes into a costume.
- Where a lot of shimmer
- has to go
to be glamorized on a stage.
I just have to bring my forte.
- Guys, we have one minute!
One minute left, everyone!
- Oh, no!
- Aah!
- All right, painters.
That's it. Time's up.
Put your tools down.
- Whoo!
- Wow!
- Incredible.
- Everybody feeling all right?
Yeah.
- Judges can't wait
- to see your work,
so follow me to the stage.
- At this point,
- all I'm worried about
is winning the first challenges,
because that's how you shine.
That's how you stand out.
That's what this is about.
- So painters,
- we can't wait to see
these costumes you've created
for these dancers.
- When the dancers come out,
my model pops out from the rest.
100%.
Vibrant, shiny,
- and it's boom in your faces,
- right there.
Like, it's not going anywhere.
- Okay, painters, it's time
- for the judges
- to take a closer look.
- I think we're starting
- with Tiffany.
- Hi.
- How are you?
- I'm doing well, thank you.
- So Tiffany, what's your style?
- We did her, um,
as Brazilian dance.
I didn't want to leave
anything too tight.
- I wanted to leave it
- really, really loose
- and the lines really fun
- to play with
so that you can have
that dancey motion.
- Okay.
- Thank you, Tiffany.
- Thank you very much.
- I call this "Bereishis."
It means "In the beginning."
- For me, the holiday
- that has the most dance
is Simchat Torah,
- so I picked the fifth day
- of creation
because it has
the whimsical bird
and the fish.
- You've got
such a nice connection
of you and the model
together in the piece.
- Thank you very much.
- I'm a professional clown,
so, being a performer
for a circus,
you have to have lots of bling,
especially from far away.
So I pretty much put that
into this piece.
- I have to say, can see
that you come from that world.
- Well, my first name
- is Jermaze,
- but typically, they call me
- "Blacc Jesus."
- Your mother calls you
- "Blacc Jesus"?
- She does.
- Is she "Blacc Mary"?
- You went head to toe.
You went deep.
- Yes.
- Did you consider, maybe,
not doing full body?
- I wanted to go ahead
- and go for it
because I know you gotta go hard
or go home here.
- How'd you get that opacity
of the color there?
- I'm not sure,
- everyone asks me that,
- and it's just how it comes out
- when I do it.
- I don't know.
- Well, no.
- Usually, when people are
- heavy-handed, it cracks.
- There's no cracking
- there--well,
there's a little crack there.
- One of the things
- that I noticed
- was you're
- one of the only people
- that has given some attention
- below the knees.
- Gladiator sandals?
- I would love to wear
- some shoes like that.
- All right. Thank you, Alison.
- Thank you.
- Right here, we have--I have
the Phoenix.
I didn't want a uniform piece.
I wanted to kind of chop it up.
- What kind of painting
- background do you have?
- Industrial paint.
- A different type
- of body work.
This is much more fun.
- Interesting choice
to have a chain up here.
- I was born and raised
- on a farm.
- Started off painting tractors.
- All right.
- Thank you, Otto.
- Thank you very much.
- I wanted to typically go with
the stylistic costume
that they were dancing in first,
and so I definitely wanted
to show my style
- right here with the detail,
- and they had
- a lot of dangly glitters all
- over the place.
- What was your biggest
challenge in this piece?
- Just having it, um,
move fluidly around the body,
- and just wanted it to make it
- really beautiful
as she, like, turned around.
- Great. Thank you, Kyera.
- Thank you.
- So what'd you think
- about all the artwork?
- Coming from Vegas,
- I felt right at home,
and I feel like everybody did
a really great job.
- My standout was Alison.
I liked that it was
a balance of
the playing it safe,
- but going
- that little bit of extra
with the way she did the, uh,
bottom, below the knee, yeah.
- Those gladiator sandals
were gorgeous.
- One of my favorites was Luis.
You know, when they were
all on stage,
my eye went straight there.
It was a costume that was
very, very well done,
and it had great details.
It was very authentic.
It was fun.
- I love what Shelley did.
Tremendous color.
- There were highlights.
- There were details.
It kept my eye flowing.
And then there was contrast
between the back and the front.
- It's also festive,
- and these girls
are wearing festive headpieces.
- You know, I-I liked Tiffany.
- Uh-huh?
- You know, she was using
a lot of
stylized brushwork that
you frequently see
in the face painting community.
She had a really nice balance,
really nice symmetry.
- Okay, well have you
picked a winner?
- I think we got it.
- Absolutely.
- Hello, painters.
- Hello.
- Hi.
- You had two hours
- to paint a costume
- on your model.
Now we're going to see
- who impressed the judges
- the most.
The top three painters
of this challenge are...
Shelley.
Luis.
And Alison.
- Congratulations,
- you're the top three painters.
- What, what?
My heart is in my throat
and my pulse is racing.
Oh, my gosh.
I'm up here
in the top three!
- The judges
have chosen a winner.
And the winner is...
Alison!
- I am genuinely stunned
when I see
my seafoam samba princess
- come walking through
- those curtains.
Yay!
- Alison, congratulations!
- I really did not expect this.
- Alison, the attention
to detail was so apparent,
and your self-expression
was really lovely.
- Thank you.
- Congratulations, Alison.
Because you are the winner,
- you've just secured yourself
- an advantage
in the next challenge.
- Yay!
- Okay, painters.
Please step over to this side
of the stage.
In the first challenge,
we celebrated the 12 of you
and the start of
another incredible season
of "Skin Wars."
In this next challenge,
you'll be putting your spin
on the greatest celebrations
from around the world.
As you can see,
I have my paint can.
One by one, I'll pull
a brush from the can
with a painter's name attached.
That painter will be assigned
the celebration that appears
next on the screen.
Michael, you're up first.
- Mardi Gras.
- Mardi Gras!
Rick.
Chinese New Year.
- Ooh.
- Tiffany.
Midsummer Festival.
- Celebrated in Sweden.
- Aw.
I am so excited about that one.
- Brittney. St. Patrick's Day!
- Oh!
- Jessica.
Holi, the festival of color
from India and Nepal.
- I'm really looking forward
- to that one.
I'm really relieved.
I do know what Holi is.
- They have a paint fight.
- It's colorful.
I can work with that.
- Kyera.
Independence Day.
Commemorating America's freedom.
- Otto.
- Oh, boy.
- Yi Peng Lantern Festival
in Thailand.
Do you know what that is, Otto?
- Nope.
- Okay.
Luis.
Oktoberfest!
Alison.
- Heritage Day.
- Ooh.
- Celebrating South African
cultural diversity.
Jermaze.
Up Helly Aa,
the winter time fire festival
in Scotland.
- Seriously?
I don't know nothing about
the Helly Aa festival.
- Shelley.
The White Nights festival,
Russia's annual cultural event.
Hans?
Dia De Los Muertos.
- Aw!
- All right!
- Sounds like everyone's
jealous of that one.
- Alison, you won
- the first challenge,
which means you get an advantage
in the next challenge.
- Whoo-hoo!
- You can keep the celebration
you've been assigned,
or you can trade
with one of your competitors.
- I'm gonna trade.
- You're gonna trade. Okay.
You have Heritage Day
in South Africa.
Which other celebration
would you like to have?
- My great-grandparents
- came over
on the boat from Sweden,
so I thought it would be
more artistically challenging
to do the Midsummer Festival
in Sweden.
- Bring it.
Bring it on, Alison.
- This is a head-to-toe,
360-degree design,
and you have just five hours
to complete your painting.
No pressure, right?
- Okay.
- We can do it.
- When you get
- to your work stations,
- you'll find headpieces
- to go along
with each celebration
for some added inspiration,
and they'll be a part
of your finished design.
- All right.
- Thank you!
- Good night, painters!
- Oh, you're using contacts!
- You bet I am, dear sir.
- You going hard today, huh?
- It's go hard or go home.
- That is true.
- Mine!
I'm excited to have Mardi Gras.
Craig Tracy is from
New Orleans,
so I have to make him like it.
- Luis. What's your name?
- Brandy.
- You're gonna be
- Miss Independence Day.
- Yay!
- Ready to roll?
- Yeah.
- All right.
- All right.
- Yeah, you take it off, and
- we gonna get started.
After this first challenge,
- this is all or nothing
- right now,
- and I'm gonna bring
- my big guns this time.
- Pull out my airbrush again
- this time,
and I'm going to get ready
to try something new.
- For the first time,
- I'm getting ready
- to try a paint brush,
- 'cause I want these judges
to know that I'm not just
an airbrush artist,
I'm an artist altogether,
and I can handle anything
that you give to me.
I'm here to take risks.
Make it pop!
They don't see it coming.
So they won't ****.
I gotta bring my A-game.
If I don't?
Hey, I could be possibly
eliminated.
This is it!
- Whoa, Michael.
- You're way ahead of me!
- You were ahead of us
- yesterday.
- I....
Our concept challenge is
celebrations around the world.
I'm working on
Midsummer's Festival,
from Sweden, celebrating
the sun and the long days,
because the nights are
so freakin' long in Sweden,
so I want to have
the day conquering the night.
- I want to incorporate
- blue and yellow
because that's the color
of the Swedish flag.
- This'll work.
- Yang--or, Yi Peng.
The Lantern Festival.
It's a festival in Thailand.
I've never been to Thailand.
I'm from Wisconsin.
I'm country.
I do industrial paint.
But I got all these
different ideas.
I want a nice dark sky
with a nice, deep, dark blue,
and I want the starry night.
- I want to make sure
- all the stars are in there.
I just got to get it done.
- This is gonna be
- a really good, fun one for me.
- Yeah?
- I actually had
- another one at first,
and then the person
that won the challenge--
- They switched?
- They took mine away.
My new celebration
is African Heritage Day,
and I happen to love
African culture.
I'm thinking giraffes, lions,
dancing, I'm thinking of drums.
I'm like, "I got this."
- My festival is
the Up Helly Aa.
It's a day thousands of people
marched down the street.
They burned stuff up,
and my design is fire and iron.
- I know that Scotland
- is known for iron.
And Vikings.
So I'm thinking, in my mind,
let's go with a Viking.
- I am feeling a little bit
stressed for time right now.
- The thought of somebody
- going home today
is really sad, but you know,
- that's the name of the game,
- and that's how it's played,
so I got to play the game.
- Guys, one hour left!
Whoo!
- I know.
- My name is Michael.
I am from Queens, New York.
I'm recognized and known
for my hyper-real art.
I am painting, and
I'm having a blast.
- Like that. That looks good.
- Like more loose.
- It's so much fun and chill,
and like,
I'm so confident with my work.
- and I look around,
- and I'm actually
feeling a bit disappointed
in all the other painters.
- I see all these
- basic bitch designs.
My piece is
definitely the best.
- Getting Fourth of July,
- I feel like,
- with design concept,
it could be cliché,
and so I knew that
it was gonna be a challenge
to incorporate a lot of things
and details
to have it stand out
amongst the other celebrations.
I planned a lot of things
that were very straightforward,
not really party.
Doesn't seem as festive
as I need it to be,
so I'm worried.
I quit my job to come out here.
There's no turning back,
so I need to be the one to win.
- Five minutes only.
Five minutes left.
- Aah!
- Yeah?
- I put a lot of time
with the paintbrush,
- so I'm thinking, like,
- "Come on, Blacc,
- "you gotta get back
- on this airbrush piece
- 'cause you don't have
- but so much time left."
- And I got to do something
- on my face.
- I can't just leave the face
- just naked,
so last minute,
paint her face silver,
and I put some black
in the eye.
I hope that it's enough.
- As I'm looking
- around the room,
Jermaze, I just feel like
his piece wasn't up to par.
His fire doesn't have
the level of detail
and realism that it should,
and I'm really worried
about him right now.
- My fear is, like,
to show up on stage,
- and like, the piece
- not to be final,
and not to be finished, and...
God, that would be a nightmare.
- Painters, that's it!
- Time's up!
Put your tools down!
- You're so pretty!
- Wow!
It's a party!
- So you ready for the judges
- to see your work?
Yes.
- Well they are waiting for you
- over on the main stage.
Follow me over.
- When time's up,
- I'm looking at other peoples',
- and I'm thinking, "Wow."
- Whoo!
- "Theirs looks really good
- with their headpiece."
At this point, I don't know
- where I stand
- in the competition.
- Let's go.
- You ready?
- Hello, painters.
Hi.
- You had five hours
to create a design inspired by
celebrations from
around the world.
In the end,
there will be one winner,
and one of you
will be going home.
Okay.
Let the party begin!
- Oh, my God, my piece actually
looks so good!
I am loving her.
Colors are so bright and poppy,
and my little leprechaun.
- I really love him
- peeking through.
He's one of my favorite pieces.
Who doesn't love a little gold?
- I really like the composition
that I chose to do.
I feel like it flatters
the African culture.
I feel like it has movement,
it flows.
She looks tall and regal.
- She looks like
- that Nubian queen
that I really wanted.
- I love the beer on her chest.
That was my favorite part.
- I probably should have
- done it bigger
to emphasize beer.
- One thing I would have
- definitely changed,
- that green apron,
- I would have done--
the plaid did not
work in my favor.
But overall,
I was very happy with it.
- Whoo!
- Yes!
- My model looks amazing,
and I'm super stoked
with the three different
masks on the hands.
And painted five masks,
two on the model's butt cheek,
- and they're making out
- with each other,
and then there's two others
on the model's arms,
and so when she opens her arms,
the mouths open.
It's clever, it's smart,
it's funny.
- I know I did a complete,
balanced piece.
The red is flowing
and the contrast is popping.
- The silver matches
- the headdress,
it ties it all in.
- The ballerina slippers
- wrap around,
- they bring
- the whole piece together.
- Now I have to sell it
- to the judges
and make sure that
they see what I see.
- I watch my model
walk onto the stage,
and I'm feeling really
confident and happy,
because she does look
like she's been
in a paint fight.
- And then, looking at
- the different elements
- and going,
- "Okay, all right."
- It's a very, very
- strong piece.
It's great.
- I know that the judges
are gonna have
a high bar for me
and expect a lot from me.
By the time my model is
walking out on stage,
and I see it from a distance,
- oh, my gosh, my piece
- actually looks beautiful.
I love my rays of sunshine
and my nighttime.
I'm so glad
that I switched my festival.
Now I'm gonna win this.
["Battle Hymn of the Republic"
- The model's walking out,
and I have no idea
how I did.
I am making the flag
flow around the body.
There's fireworks.
On the hip, I put the 13 stars,
- representing
- how we started off,
and I really hope
they love my eagle.
- At this time, I'm happy
with what I did.
- I know I could have
- made the Buddha
- a little bit bigger,
- maybe I could have
made him more serious,
but I tried to use
a little creative aspect
by putting the lanterns
on her arms.
I love the reflection
of the moonlight
off the mountains
into the waters.
- I'm feeling good.
I worked so hard on my piece.
I'm feeling
very confident right now.
My favorite part is the front,
- where the roses are
- in a triptych.
I did the classical sugar skull
for the face.
- Here where
- the clavicle bone is,
I turned into
the offering table.
This is gonna be my victory.
- With my piece,
I covered a whole full body,
I only used my airbrush
towards the end.
- I specifically love the texture
- that I put in.
- I'm really satisfied right now,
- I am.
- I'm feeling good.
- I mean, overall,
I'm really happy
with the body paint.
I like the way
the dragon flows with my model
and then wraps around her.
Makes me feel good.
Wow!
- Whoo!
- Whoo-hoo!
- Wow, painters!
You took us
on a round-the-world celebration
- and we didn't even need
- a passport.
That was amazing.
You've given the judges
a lot to talk about.
- But first,
- they'd like to ask you
some questions about your work.
Okay, Brittney, tell us about
- your celebration
- and your painting.
- Basically, I just--
- I wanted to have
- a lot of fun with this
- because I wanted to show
- a little bit of my personality
within my piece itself.
- I'm just trying
- to wrap my head around it.
- What is--can you
- turn your model around?
- Sure.
- Why is your leprechaun, like,
got his butt out
with the little skirt flown up?
- Because I'm always
fascinated--
I love the fact that men
actually wear kilts,
and I always hear
that underneath the kilt,
they're not wearing underwear.
You can appreciate a man
with a good back, right?
- Absolutely.
- Michael.
You're up.
- My celebration was Mardi Gras,
and they have three
representative colors:
purple for justice,
green for faith,
and gold for power,
- and so I decided to stick to
- those colors
for my painting.
And so, for the back,
I just had different masks
interacting with each other,
and the first thing I did was
paint sperm onto my model.
- Oh, man.
- So the back is a big
spermatozoa orgasm.
- Yeah, it's like the
Mardi Gras mask of fertility.
- It's definitely intriguing.
- Okay, Jermaze.
Your turn.
- I wanted to have power
with my piece
because fire is a power element.
- What you're looking at
- right here
is texture, symmetry.
- I do love
- the shoulder pieces.
They actually do look like iron.
- This is a fire festival,
and when I'm looking
at your model,
those flames, to me?
That's not great rendering.
There's not a lot of detail
as far as the flames go.
- Okay.
- And then that--that face?
- Yes.
- Man, there's a little bit more
you could have done there.
You know?
- All right, Tiffany.
Your turn.
- So, my celebration
was South African Heritage Day,
and in the culture,
they wear tons of masks.
They love the animals,
and they incorporate that
in tons of the artwork
that they have as well.
- Tiffany, it truly represents
a festival in its flair,
color, design, detail.
- You took the most
Anglo-Saxon model in the world,
and turned her into Shaka Zulu.
This is stunning.
- Aw, thank you.
Thank you, thank you.
- Well, I think
- that a lot of us
- are familiar with
- the Day of the Dead.
The loved one has been buried.
When they are laid to rest,
people obviously throw roses,
and on the back here,
as the spirit leaves the skull,
we see the sun set
and we fade into blackness.
- You were very thoughtful
in your composition.
It's simple,
but it's effective.
- You're doing a good job
explaining things,
but, um,
I expected more from you.
There are elements that I love,
and there are some things
that I'm not thrilled about,
especially on the back.
It doesn't say
"Mexican holiday."
It--it doesn't fit into
the rest of it.
- Oh, man.
- Is this really
- happening right now?
- And then your sunset--
- I thought it was a full moon.
- I--yeah, the back,
a little neglected,
a little stepchild.
- Wow.
I'm kind of speechless.
- Thank you, Hans.
- And I do not want to be
the first person to leave
on a concept so easy.
- Okay, Alison.
You're up.
- I do like
- the focal point here.
From a distance, I was having
trouble seeing it,
- but, you know, when I got close,
- I was like,
"Oh, yeah, that is a, you know,
really beautiful,
effective focal point."
- I want to know, what's with
the little magical--
- I almost forgot!
- I'm not gonna let you forget.
- My tomten!
These are little guys
in Swedish folklore,
- and they're sort of like
- little gnomes.
- I'm interested about
the daytime
overtaking the night.
It still seems to be
way more night than daytime.
- This was, you know,
- daytime with clouds,
but my blue, I think,
came out a little darker.
- This was meant
- to be the night here,
and then all of this was day.
- Okay, Rick.
Your turn.
- First of all,
- it's a spiritual journey
of, like, experiencing death
and a rebirth type of style.
- And of course,
- I wanted to throw some,
like, a festive style of art
with the fireworks on top
and just make it just feel
- like a whole party on her,
- you know?
- All right, Rick.
There's a lot
that makes me smile here.
- Wanted to see a little bit more
- highlights and shadows,
but your design elements
are right on the money.
- You're going really dark,
- and we're starting
- to lose things,
so just keep that in mind.
- All right.
- Okay, Luis.
You're up.
- My festival is Oktoberfest.
It originally started
before 1811.
It was when Price Ludwig
and Princess Therese
got married,
and he supplied, like,
a bunch of beer,
so that was, pretty much,
the inspiration,
and it's in October,
so it's like fall, so maybe
- some of the leaves falling
- into the beer and stuff--
- I don't like
- leaves in my beer.
- But yeah--like, okay, but
- think about it this way:
- Like, what if you walk outside
- and you're, like,
- under a tree, and you're, like,
- having a conversation,
and like a leaf falls in?
- I got to tell you:
that beer on the front
- looks delicious--
- Mm-hmm.
- And that pretzel--man,
I want to bite the hell
out of that pretzel!
- Okay, Kyera.
Your turn.
- You definitely incorporated
a lot conceptually.
I wish that, technically,
- everything was
- up to the standard
of the beautiful eagle
on the back.
That eagle is just so
beautifully painted
and well-rendered,
it makes the rest of it
just look not as sharp.
- Is there anything
- that you wish
you had put on that you didn't?
- I really wanted to put in
the Statue of Liberty,
um, and so I think
I kind of got that
royal statue in her face.
- Thank you, painters.
The judges have a very tough
decision to make.
Please head back to the lounge.
- So, judges.
Which paintings
did you really like?
- I went gaga over Tiffany.
Her piece really encompassed
everything that that festival
had to offer and more.
- That girl understands color.
- Michael was exquisite.
Those colors could have easily
turned into a muddy heap
in the Mississippi delta.
- The front and the back
were so different,
- and yet it all just
- flowed together
really harmoniously.
- Yeah.
- With Brittney, you know,
I really loved
the St. Patrick's Day.
- If you've ever tried to paint
a straight line
on a human body,
it is crazy hard,
but she pulled it off.
- I gotta say, I was
disappointed in Alison.
- I know that
- she was trying to have
the daytime overcome
the nighttime.
I just felt more nighttime.
It felt uneven.
- Well, the palate, too.
- You know, her colors were
- all over the place.
- Yes.
- Yes.
So, let's go to Jermaze now.
- I like his use of color.
- Hmm.
- It was symmetric.
- He's got the boldness,
but maybe not that detail.
That fire looked like something
- I'd see in
- a third grade classroom.
- You're absolutely right.
- His fire didn't
- bring the heat, honey.
- Blacc Jesus did not
cause any miracles--
- No, there were no miracles
- here today.
- Here on "Skin Wars."
- No, no.
Hans, even though
he filled the criteria,
it just was, "Eh. Meh."
- Orange booty.
- I thought it was a pumpkin.
- Yeah, I did too.
- Yeah.
- I was really disappointed
with Kyera's Independence Day.
You know, the flag was cool,
but when you got up close,
you know, it wasn't
very cleanly rendered,
and I think she saved the best
and stuck it
on the back shoulder,
that beautiful eagle.
- That should have been
- the focal point.
- Color, energy, flow,
all of that matters.
You can't just throw paint
on a model
and say,
"Walk the runway, darling."
- Luis.
Otto.
Shelley.
Rick.
Jess.
Alison.
Congratulations.
You are safe.
You may head back to the lounge.
That means the rest of you
make up the top three
and the bottom three.
Brittney.
Michael.
And Tiffany.
Congratulations,
you are the top three.
- Please step forward.
Brittney.
You're safe.
- You can leave
- the elimination stage.
- Thank you, guys.
Appreciate it.
- Michael, your painting
was both regal
and elegant,
- and your interpretation
- of Mardi Gras
was spot-on.
Whoo.
- Great work.
- Thank you.
- Tiffany, your painting
encompassed everything
- that the festival
- was meant to be,
and your use of color
absolutely blew me away.
- Thank you so much.
- Michael.
Tiffany.
The winner of
this challenge is...
- This is my chance to prove
I have what it takes to be here
in the top.
I want this so bad.
- Michael.
Tiffany.
We were all very impressed
with your work today,
but only one of you
can be the winner
of this challenge.
The winner of
this challenge is...
- Tiffany.
- Congratulations!
- You're the winner!
- Aah! Whoo!
- Yeah.
- Hey.
- Congratulations.
- Nice. Thank you guys.
Thank you so much.
- The spirit in your work
shows exactly
what great body painting
fierce, fun,
and fearless.
Aw, thank you.
- Great job, Tiffany.
- You and Michael can head
- back to the lounge.
- Thank you.
- Thank you.
- Like, how great is that,
- to be the first winner of, like,
- the huge challenge
on "Skin Wars"?
- Aah!
- People are gonna remember that!
- Yay!
- Yay!
- Jermaze.
Kyera.
Hans.
One of you
will be going home tonight.
Hans?
You're safe.
You may head back to the lounge.
- Wow.
- Thank God.
It's important for me to stay
because I haven't had a chance
to show anyone my talent yet.
- Jermaze and Kyera.
- That means you're
- the bottom two,
and one of you is going home.
- I can't breathe
at this point.
I've worked so hard,
and I can't leave first.
- Jermaze, your painting had
some terrific symmetry,
but at the same time,
it lacked some creativity
and you just didn't
bring that fire
to the fire.
- Kyera, there were
strengths in your work,
like that beautifully-rendered
eagle,
but there were
some technical issues,
and your composition was just
a little bit off.
- Kyera.
You're safe for now.
Thank you so much.
- You can leave
- the elimination stage.
- Thank you.
- Jermaze, the resurrection
is meaningless
without the crucifixion.
We will see you rise.
- Thank you so much
for allowing me
to bless the world.
- Jermaze, please
go wash off your canvass.
- Blacc Jesus.
- I was chosen
out of thousands of people
and I made it top 12.
- Oh!
- Good-bye.
It's all right.
Even though I'm not a top,
world-renowned body painter,
from this point, the only way to
go is up from here.
But whoever wins the $100,000,
give me a call, because--
Let's go have some fun,
all right?
"Skin Wars" season three
- was the nucleus
- of this new beginning,
- and the whole world
- will know my name now,
because I am the airbrush king.
- This season
on "Skin Wars"...
You're going to
the Aquarium of the Pacific.
I am very impressed here.
Yes!
- A toy store!
- You just woke the **** up.
- There's gonna be a pageant!
- My model looks hot.
- Wait a minute.
That's not a woman.
- That was a stroke of genius.
- Please welcome
Jillian Rose Reed.
Kandee Johnson.
Adrienne Bailon.
Kristin Gearhart.
Shawn Johnson.
Samantha Harris.
- Wow!
- Is this gonna be easy?
No, it's not gonna be easy!
- I didn't come here
- to make friends.
- I came here
- to take that money home.
- You need to check your ego.
- What?
- No!
- I'm freaking out.
- Get out!