File puptcrit/puptcrit.0806, message 98


To: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org
Date: Thu, 12 Jun 2008 13:42:34 -0400
From: wipuppets-AT-aol.com
Subject: Re: [Puptcrit] Puppets seen as art or not?



 This last winter and spring, Tears of Joy Theatre had two very successful exhibits of our puppets. 
One was at the local Children's museum. Because children's museums are so hands on, and we don't want our puppets handled by 1000's of toddlers, we placed about 25 of our animal puppets in out of reach places throughout the museum. All families got a handout with drawings of the puppets and  a 'puppet hunt' became part of their experience. It was a great success, kids had fun, and the museum staff commented on how empty the place felt after we had to take them all down. 
The second was in a gallery at our central library in downtown Portland. This gallery is in a common area of the library which one has to pass through in order to get to the humanities room, so you can imagine the traffic- the exposure puppetry got over the six weeks they were there. The exhibit included puppets made for us by Yang Feng and others in China, and Jan Wilcowski and his associates in Poland. Mary Robinette Kowal's Cinderella and her Fairy Godmother were also featured. The challenge was selecting puppets that would work in their existing display cases which usually display books and flat art. 
These were special events for this past season, projects that these entities took on to help Tears of Joy celebrate its 35th anniversary season.? The point is that people got exposed to puppetry in places  that they didn't expect them, and I'm sure that many gained a new appreciation for the art form.
While I was compelled to write and defensively say, "Yes, Christopher, we are doing those things," I also hope that these are ideas that get used again.

Nancy Aldrich



 


 

-----Original Message-----
From: Christopher Hudert <heyhoot-AT-mindspring.com>
To: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org
Sent: Wed, 11 Jun 2008 11:29 am
Subject: Re: [Puptcrit] Puppets seen as art or not?










Changed the subject line slightly ...

On Jun 11, 2008, at 12:58 PM, Alan Cook wrote:

> Why am I so fussy? Because puppet exhibits are still fairly rare in 
> comparison to other art exhibits---ie: we don't get to show good stuff 
> to the public often enough, and when we leave too much important stuff 
> out, to me it is another lost opportunity to edcate the public.

This is one of my pet peeves of puppetry in general, but particularly 
of the P of A. I believe we are VERY good at hiding our light under a 
bushel basket, which is NOT a good thing. Here we are entering P of A 
(and others) festival season. Shows, workshops, stores, and more often 
than not, some really good exhibits are all features of the festivals. 
How often is the public included in the activities? How often is the 
public able to see the exhibits? How often are exhibits and/or shows 
extended beyond the festival site where the public would be better 
exposed to what is offered? How often are the myriad of shows open to 
the public? How often is the festival cross marketed to like minded 
organizations locally, regionally, or nationally (ie clowns, magicians, 
vents, storytellers, librarians, teachers, and so on)? In my 
observation and opinion, the answer to most if not all of those 
questions is RARELY. Yes, there are exceptions to the rule, but it sure 
seems to me that the potential golden opportunity to expose and educate 
the public is at best under utilized, if not totally lost. If we as 
individual puppeteers and festival organizers can't make the most of 
this opportunity when all of the pieces are being assembled and readily 
available, how can we wonder when it is difficult to accomplish as a 
stand alone event? When it comes time to place the blame on why our 
shared art is not better recognized and/or understood, I have to quote 
Pogo from long ago. I don't recall the exact words, but it is something 
like "I have met the enemy, and he is us."  Few of us have the 
dedication of Alan Cook, John Bell, or the handful of others who seem 
to work tirelessly pushing this rope up hill while the rest of us bat 
at it like playful kittens. But if we want there to be change, we must 
individually and collectively be a part of that change.

So I have to ask of myself and the readers of this post: what have YOU 
done lately to promote the art of puppetry? Not your individual part of 
it, or your shows, but the larger art? Have you lectured at your local 
library, high school, college, civic club, or other group? Have you 
worked with an organization to exhibit your puppet collection (and 
maybe some things borrowed from others if your collection isn't large 
or varied) during World Puppetry Day or the National Day of Puppetry? 
Have you made the rounds of the art galleries and/or museums to try to 
get an exhibit of puppetry set up? Have you recruited interested 
parties to join your local guild? Have you written an article for the 
newsletter of your own or other guilds? How have you shared the passion 
for the art with others outside of your circle? (Yes, it's fun to go to 
on line and physical gatherings of like minded people, but that expands 
within the circle, not outside of it.) If you've done some or all of 
these things, is it time to do it again? If you've tried unsuccessfully 
to do some or all of these things, it IS time to try again. Only by 
being an active, constant, advocate will change happen. Some (maybe 
even much) of this will be on your own time and on your own dime. It 
will take time, but eventually (and gradually) the desired change of 
the way puppetry is seen will happen.

Okay, I'll get off of my soap box before I really get into a rant.

Christopher

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