People worked at various paces trying to keep up with Hannah Miller who was teaching them how to make simple marionettes from fabric, string and beads. The hardest part was the stringing, and Hannah had to explain that in a puppet making workshop there was usually one person who was the master of stringing. Jeff Ferree restrung his puppet several times until he felt it was right. Hannah walked the people who were ready out of the conference room into the main floor of Urban ReThink. Mirrors were set up so people could see their puppets perform. People giggled as they saw their areations come to life. A couple faced each other and the puppets bowed and curtsied to each other. Jeff let me try his puppet which seemed bigger than most. The strings to control the hands were threaded through a hole at the front of the cross bars. I tugged the string and both arms rose. Walking the puppet took some skill but having the head look around brought an instant spark of life.
4 thoughts on “Marionette Making Workshop Stringing”
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Do you ever consider a more impressionistic style? Surreal? Its good art and seems very literal. I'd like to see you explore other styles.
Thanks, keep it up!
Nope. I do what I do.
What a fun thing to do. Lovely to create something and pull your own strings!
For the record, contrary to saying there is usually "one person who is the master of stringing" I'm pretty sure I said that it usually takes 3 people to comfortably string a puppet (one on the control, one on the ground, and one to watch and guide)… though these little fabric fellas are much more simple to manage. =)
Thor, couldn't you have pulled up the pants on the left in this drawing…? Or must you, like the wilderness documentarian, not interfere with what you observe? :/
So many emoticons in this comment! Also, PS, "I do what I do" made me laugh so hard I snorted.