8 Marionettes Posted by Abdolos on Mar 30, 2011
Hello everyone,
This year I received a grant from the Winnipeg Arts Council to make and display eight marionettes using my foam-rubber and dowel method. I would probably have posted progress on the project sooner, but I also got a full time job this year, so I've been working hard to squeeze in construction time. The grant marionettes are supposed to be a baby, a young boy, a young girl, an adult male, an adult female, an old man, an old woman, and a skeleton. When I first sat down to this project, I realized that I had no idea of comparative proportion, so I went out and found a great book on the subject, The Sculptor and Art Student's Guide to the Proportions of the Human Form by Dr. Johann Gottfried Schadow. Now I know a little bit more, and here are the heads that I have had time to produce:
It's a little difficult to see some of the detail on the unpainted foam, but then again, I found some of my errors revealed by these pictures. Luckily, I've still got nine months to refine the carving as I see fit. The skull is made out of a combination of papier-mache and paper clay.
Here's the internal structure for the foam heads:
It's actually three different pieces that lock together inside of the head. I forgot to get a picture of the new saw that I've been using lately, but I'll post that next time.
I'm working on the torsos now, so there are fragments of foam-rubber on all of my sweaters. Luckily spring is coming.
Will I get these puppets done by the end of the year??? Stay tuned!
This year I received a grant from the Winnipeg Arts Council to make and display eight marionettes using my foam-rubber and dowel method. I would probably have posted progress on the project sooner, but I also got a full time job this year, so I've been working hard to squeeze in construction time. The grant marionettes are supposed to be a baby, a young boy, a young girl, an adult male, an adult female, an old man, an old woman, and a skeleton. When I first sat down to this project, I realized that I had no idea of comparative proportion, so I went out and found a great book on the subject, The Sculptor and Art Student's Guide to the Proportions of the Human Form by Dr. Johann Gottfried Schadow. Now I know a little bit more, and here are the heads that I have had time to produce:
It's a little difficult to see some of the detail on the unpainted foam, but then again, I found some of my errors revealed by these pictures. Luckily, I've still got nine months to refine the carving as I see fit. The skull is made out of a combination of papier-mache and paper clay.
Here's the internal structure for the foam heads:
It's actually three different pieces that lock together inside of the head. I forgot to get a picture of the new saw that I've been using lately, but I'll post that next time.
I'm working on the torsos now, so there are fragments of foam-rubber on all of my sweaters. Luckily spring is coming.
Will I get these puppets done by the end of the year??? Stay tuned!
Re: 8 Marionettes Posted by Abdolos on Jul 26, 2011
I'm not sure if I'm on schedule or a little behind, but I've finally finished the eight torsos of my eight new marionettes. That means that I only have to make sixteen arms, sixteen legs, and eight controllers before I'm ready to string them up. Still hoping to be done by new year's day. Here are all the puppets together:
And here are a couple of closer shots so you can see some of the detail:
As with the heads, the principle of construction is to make the bulk out of foam rubber, and to have the majority of the structural and mechanical parts made out of wood. So here are the two kinds of parts separated:
I've also shot a little video where I assemble the torso. It's not really fascinating, but if you're curious about my method, it reveals a lot:
" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>
https://youtu.be/-J3588ty9Oc
Finally, here's a detail shot of the break-apart skeleton:
It's almost completely different from the other seven marionettes, and so it's taking a lot longer to build. Every step in its construction is an experiment. The arms, legs, head, and pelvis will all break off from the central torso.
So, if I keep on schedule, my next big update will be in two months. Hey, that's about a pair of arms a week!
And here are a couple of closer shots so you can see some of the detail:
As with the heads, the principle of construction is to make the bulk out of foam rubber, and to have the majority of the structural and mechanical parts made out of wood. So here are the two kinds of parts separated:
I've also shot a little video where I assemble the torso. It's not really fascinating, but if you're curious about my method, it reveals a lot:
" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>
https://youtu.be/-J3588ty9Oc
Finally, here's a detail shot of the break-apart skeleton:
It's almost completely different from the other seven marionettes, and so it's taking a lot longer to build. Every step in its construction is an experiment. The arms, legs, head, and pelvis will all break off from the central torso.
So, if I keep on schedule, my next big update will be in two months. Hey, that's about a pair of arms a week!
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