a puppet collaboration

Amy Laugeson (our wonderful ceramic teacher) and I, partnered up to bring a new kind of puppet to the studio.  Amy spent two days working with the children in the studio, with me at her side, making ceramic puppet heads using a raku clay.  The children were invited into the studio and after an introduction to the process, they were asked to draw their idea for a puppet head.  Amy and I then supported their creative process as they set to work making their vision a reality.  Once dried, these heads will be bisque fired, coated with a white crackle glaze and then fired a second time in a raku kiln.

The next day was devoted to dying cotton muslin fabric to be used as the bodies of our puppets.  I gathered a variety of natural food dyes, including: coffee, black tea, beets, cranberries, black cherries, purple cabbage and onion skins and placed them in the center of a large table.  The muslin was soaked in a warm salt water bath.  Each child was given a piece of muslin and encouraged to arrange the food on it however they wished.  This parcel was then rolled up and bound with string.  We allowed the fabric to set for several days to deepen the color.  Once the puppet heads are ready we will begin assembling our creations.

Stay posted for the next installment in the weeks ahead.

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