Mixed-Media Marionettes

Through narrative art, artists find a voice to educate, share whimsical stories, and incorporate humor and play into the art-making process. In this lesson, students were introduced to narrative art as they looked at Lascaux Cave paintings, the contemporary paintings of Inka Essenhigh, Chinese shadow puppetry, and 3D marionettes. Researching artists such as Wayne White and Warren King, artists who create amazing puppets on a grand scale, students discovered the possibilities and limitations of puppets in the art world.

Problem-Based Learning
Students randomly chose an animal or human subject and a career from a hat. This gave them a unique starting point for their own marionette design. This technique provided students with a distinctive problem-based learning opportunity with characters ranging from a giraffe who owns a bakery to a llama who teaches surfing.

Discovery and Early Assessment
Clay, colored pencils, yarn, wire, cardboard, fabric, paint, sewing machines, clay tools, and sewing needles filled the art room as students began to produce their creations.

First, students created a 2D illustration to showcase their marionette character, focusing on the middle and background spaces to create a narrative work of art. After a peer critique, students made adjustments and brainstormed how to transform their 2D work of art into a 3D form.

Next, students planned which media would be used for the various parts of their marionettes. Many students created the characterʼs head, arms, and legs out of clay and designed the body and accessories out of various media after the firing process was complete.

Choice and Collaboration
Throughout this lesson, students had a lot of voice and choice, providing a wide variety of teaching and learning experiences. No two marionettes were the same and no two students experienced the same artistic struggle in the same way. Students talked through their ideas with one another, shared expertise, and collaborated as they developed their works of art. Students took on the role of the learner and the teacher in multiple ways, and as their instructor, I was there to demonstrate proper techniques and encourage this collaborative learning environment.

Puppets Come to Life
Clay was painted, fabric was sewn and stuffed, and yarn was brushed to mimic hair. As students finished up and added the necessary marionette hardware—hooks, wire, and wooden hand bar—the artworks came to life, walking along the tables and floors and interacting with each other. On instinct, students embraced the childlike play and pretended their puppets were talking to one another.

Narrative Play
Students developed an artist statement which could take the form of a short story from the marionette’s point of view, a song, a poem, a graphic novel, or a video. It was their story to tell, and by allowing them multiple outlets to meet this goal, students had the opportunity to express their individuality.

A Spanish-speaking student whose marionette was a guitar player chose to write a song and sing it in Spanish for her class. Another student chose to make a documentary video of her marionette complete with props, narrative text, and music.

The experience was complete when the marionettes were placed in display cases at the school and at a nearby contemporary art museum.