What the heck. I am currently trying new things. Nothing really for public viewing yet…. but I uploaded my first Munch & Kin trial as an unlisted clip to youtube. Just to show the people I am working with what the puppets can do. There are lots of things I haven’t sussed yet. For example the backdrop of the theatre. I used a triple folded net curtain. I hoped it would hide the puppeteer completely while the puppeteer on the other hand would see the puppets while working. Unfortunately you still can make out a shadow, while I couldn’t see a thing and therefore the puppets move pretty awkwardly. I had no idea which way they were facing. Also they don’t have their final dresses yet and I had to finger my way through copious amounts of material that I had fixed in a make-shift way to their handles. So to sum it up, it was a disaster really, nevertheless I do like the expression on their faces. And this is the most important bit, everything else I can learn or solve.
I was so itching to get back to puppet making and spend all weekend to create puppets for a project that will advocate good nutrition. Here it was important to me, that the puppets could open their mouths, but they also should show their relationship with the Dedes. In this photograph I photoshopped two images of the same puppet together, to show it with the mouth open and closed. However, here the mouth is propped open with a aluminium tube, which I originally wanted to use. It runs inside the handle. But when the puppet was finished, I discovered, when I shake it in a certain way, the mouth opens and closes without the help of the tube and I only need one hand. So I can work two puppets at once. It is amazing how plans always change.
Everything is back to normal. The conference is over and my friend Avril has gone back home to Australia. The picture shows Avril next the poster with our star, Lizzie. We had brilliant feedback about the film from the people who watched it at the conference. Personally, I know more about Lipoedema now than I ever wanted to know :), but I guess this is why I like to get involved in such projects.
Most people were surprised that we did the film without funding. Avril and I had talked about whether we should seek funding for the project in the beginning, but it was in the too hard basket for both of us, particularly as we were working in different countries. I myself have no experience with funding agencies and I believe seeking funding would have slowed the whole thing down and made the process more cumbersome.
Would I do it again? Most certainly! Though I would rethink my view on seeking funding first…
I know, I have been pretty slack lately with writing on my blog. Last year around this time the Dedes were extremely busy having their Super Dede competition. This year they are moping about in their dark cupboard. Due to dramatic changes in my work life I am currently preoccupied with research. I have to re-invent myself yet again. The more research I do, the more I am convinced that I want to stay with puppetry in the future. The other day, I had to laugh when I read in a book by Kenneth Gross called “Puppets” what puppeteer Michael Vogel said. He said that once, while working on a piece based on Baudelaire’s Paris Spleen, he felt many old, unused puppets in his studio asking for a chance for new work. Always, he said, even when he could not use them, “I try to be polite, so they are not annoyed or frustrated.” (p 76). I had to read this out loud to the Dedes. They shouldn’t get too precious, other puppets have problems too!
Personally, I am busy with heaps of stuff, but I am terribly superstitious. I don’t want to talk about half-baked things. I strongly believe if I talk prematurely, they don’t work out. But I can tell you, I will be really happy when 2013 is finally over. It was such a crap year, it can only get better next year :). My puppetry workshop has finally been announced in the Term 1 programme of Artstation. So if you are living in Auckland and want to know more about puppets: Do enrol! (grrrrrr, I hate blatant self-promotion). However, I need to get enough enrolments for the course to take place. I am definitely looking forward to it. Unfortunately puppetry is not very big in New Zealand.
The puppet in the picture is another project I can now start talking about. It is the prototype for the main character in a short film (a very short film, but longer than the flash dramas the Dedes usually do). The film is a collaboration between a therapist in Australia, a playwright in England and myself. An interesting way to work, it all happens by email and it’s working very well. We have submitted the film to a conference that will take place in April. So there is a definite deadline and it is a lovely project to escape the Christmas blues.
Admittedly, communication between the Dedes and me hasn’t been so hot lately and I sensed there is a lot of uncertainty about what is going to happen; what I have lined up for them. I have a history of doing new things and just presenting them with what they have to do next. But I strongly believe somebody has to make the decisions around here. Personally, I am not a big fan of decisions by committee: when you try to please everybody you always end up with something boringly average. The majority of the Dedes, on the other hand, are a comfortable lot and are not very keen on change. So to debunk their fears I thought I would invite them to a full Dede puppet meeting and explain what I am up to, even though it only marginally affects them.
Would you believe it? A mere five puppets showed up. Out of how many? 63, 64. Isn’t it pathetic? Behind closed cupboard doors they whisper and complain. You would think they are planning a mutiny. But when they could come out and have their say, hardly anybody showed up.
They had their chance, and not showing up is not my fault. I still went ahead and told them what I have planned for next year and why all these strangely constructed actors have shown up. These are samples for a puppet workshop I am holding at a community artschool in Auckland in the beginning of next year. The course follows my own path into puppetry from the visual arts perspective, rather than from a theatrical point. I am keen to convey the self explorational properties of puppet making and it’s magical uses as a problem-solving tool. In one session I will use the Dedes, but ultimately I want the students to unleash their own creative thinking when it comes to puppet making. And by the end of the course we will have made a stop motion film. I am quite excited about this project.
But wait, there is more. I was invited by the manager of Estuary Arts Centre in Orewa (just north of Auckland) to co-curate a puppet month in July next year. We envisage a festival of puppet making, story telling and performance, and not just for children. This week I put an EOI note on Big Idea. It would be amazing to bring a bunch of puppeteers together and further object theatre in New Zealand. Needless to say I am equally excited about this project.
So, fingers crossed, I can find enough students for the course to run and enough puppeteers to make puppet month happen…
The Dedes didn’t say much. They just wandered off when they realised my plans really didn’t involve them. I guess they didn’t know what to think about all this and have to confer with the other lot that stayed in the cupboard.
All the Dedes had so much fun doing the little films that they definitely want to continue doing more. We are not short of ideas. They were surprised to find out their art form even has a name. “Flash Drama”. I came across the term on Wikipedia and I thought it describes what the Dedes are doing to a tee. So I researched a bit more. A flash drama is a short play, as short as several seconds and up to 10 minutes in length. It is played out by a single character or very few characters. The drama genrally unfolds in one act, though blocking and lighting may be used to imply jumps in time or between locations. The set is minimal or non-existent. In German there is a similar thing called Mini Drama or Dramolett (I love the word Dramolett), but this can be up to 20 minutes. Does this mean the Germans are more longwinded? Just kidding!
Anyway, I will do something today that I usually steer clear of. I will explain the moral of the “Elephant in tutu” dramolett. It is sad, but the drama depicts the year I have had! Yes, apart from the Dedes I had a pretty shoddy year. I danced my little heart out, admittedly I sometimes misjudged the situation and missed the beat, but in general I thought I did a relatively good job. But the critiques didn’t like it. No explanation needed, just a simple and resounding NO! Like Push Push I felt like chucking it all in, but I know very well, when I drop my tutu, someone will pick it up and continue. Everybody is replaceable. Dropping the tutu should be a considered action. Generally you don’t get it back! Though sometimes it is worth chucking in the tutu and taking up singing instead.
Safe landing everybody!
Mouse has finally recovered and rejoined us yesterday. She certainly didn’t want to miss Miss Viwi’s third installment about the background of the Dede puppets. But has she learned from her breakdown? No!
Deutsch Fraulein volunteered to do the translation this time. She believes she isn’t featured enough on the blog. Mouse, however, doesn’t think much of Deutsch Fraulein’s skills. In the end they tried to work together and were nearly finished, when they started to quarrel over who is driving the computer mouse. One of them, I don’t know who, accidentally clicked the ‘Publish’ button before the translation was finished… So if you got a partially finished post in your inbox, I apologise. After that, both of them lost interest and I was left to finish the translation of Miss Viwi’s work this morning. So, here is… (And you will find the German original here)
It is amazing how time flies. This is already the third part of the fascinating interview series with Dietlind Wagner.
miss viwi: Why do the Dede’s have bodies in the film, but not in the exhibition?
dietlind: „the puppets were conceived as ‘Nobodies’, which of course is ambiguous, like so many other aspects of the work.
On the one hand it is a comment that everything happens in one’s head. (This has something to do with my experience in digital. For years I have mainly worked digitally. Only when I took up painting in acrylic again, did I realise how much I missed the the haptic and physical in my work.)
On the other hand a „Nobody“ is also an non-entity.
Everybody is in some respect a nobody“.miss viwi: Can one interpret it in such a way that the puppets are living subjects in the film, while in an exhibition they are objects created by you?
dietlind: „Yes, that is pretty much how it is.
In the book the puppets have digitally added bodies. I realised that body language is absolutely necessary to tell a story, even if it is only expressed by a very simple body.
Later the Dedes got their black robes, as contrast to their colourful heads.In an exhibition I want the viewers to engage closely with the collages. They hint at a character’s traits. Foxy Lady, for example, has a map on the back of her head, indicating she is a roamer. Devil’s Advocate is a man of words and has a scrabble board.
The collages are too detailed to come out in photographs, but the puppets can be easily distinguished.
In story-telling the additional expression of the body is absolutely necessary, as the facial expressions are as good as non-existent. I say as good as: it is in fact possible to tease out slightly different expressions by changing the camera angle.”
{The finalists in the Super Dede Competition 2012.
Left to right: L’artiste Dede, Harvey, Mouse (back), Pig (front) and Cash Cow.}The dedepuppets are artworks that function on multiple levels: as photographs, sculptures, video, illustrations and literature.
miss viwi: Where exactly does the subjectifying of objects take place and vice versa, the objectifying of subjects?
dietlind: “This is a very good question.
It happens in the mind of the viewer. Everyone interprets their surroundings with their own knowledge and values.
In my opinion it is impossible to communicate with another subject completely and unambiguously. Every communication is ultimately a reflection on the ‘self’.When I view my cat as my baby, I will interpret her reactions to me as that of a baby. Does the cat behave like a baby? No, she behaves like a cat, it is me who sees what I want to see!
Of course I need to know how a baby reacts to actually see it in my cat.When I tell the story, that Nosy Neighbour complains about the party noise at night, everybody who has experienced a similar complaint will see in Nosy Neighbour their neigbour, not mine.”
miss viwi: Do you have a puppet you don’t like?
dietlind: “Two-faced is a puppet I visually dislike. She has one laughing face and one in which she rolls her eyes. She irritates me.
All the other puppets have some character traits I dislike, but at the same time they have lovely traits and it balances itself out. One exception is Harvey, the gambling rabbit. I try to understand him, but somehow it doesn’t seem to work. In real live a Harvey would have a lot of trouble with me. And Smug Little Devil is getting up my nose as well.”
miss viwi: How much Dietlind-personality is in the individual puppet personalities?
dietlind: “Plenty, but none is undilutedly Dietlind. I have friends who have read the book and could see themselves in every single character. That shows that they are only general observations. None of the characters are based on a particular person.”
miss viwi: What do you mean by Parallel Universe?
dietlind: “Like in real life, but not real.
The term ‘Parallel Universe’ was taking the mickey on current culture on TV. I think that is certainly no different in Austria than in New Zealand, parallel universes are in.The Dedes have an absolutely non-thrilling life, just like most people: no murder, no killings, no sex in public but they still tell their stories and life goes on…”
miss viwi: Does the creation of art always happen in a parallel universe?
dietlind: “I can’t answer this question for everybody. For me personally the creation definitely takes place in a different sphere. I wouldn’t call it a parallel universe, though.”
Mouse, Super Dede 2012.
Mouse was initially angry with Dietlind when she found out about the interview, but the resentment has since vanished. Mouse was the first to check out the interview two weeks ago… as soon as it was published. Her approving final words were: “Miss Viwi has done a wonderful job and I am certainly looking forward to next week.” They filled Miss Viwi with great pride.
Miss Viwi is excited to have won Mouse over and comments: “Can there be anything more wonderful than writing about Art and subsequently receive praise from the artwork itself.”
Miss Viwi also sent Mouse her the best wishes for a speedy recovery!
Next Sunday, 27th Jan 2013 |:::VEGGIETORIA:::| is expecting an additional special guest
L’Artiste Dede
{L’artiste dede, here with a triptych by Dietlind Wagner, Where am I?, Acrylic on canvas, 2012.}Together with Dietlind Wagner he will answer questions about art and its function, and also some personal ones.
See you next week, same time, same place, new guests, new questions.
Miss Viwi and Dietlind are happy about any comments on the series. You can leave a comment in German on Miss Viwi’s blog or email her veggietoria@live.at. You can also leave a comment on this blog here.
Last night the second post of the Dede story was launched at ||:VEGGIETORIA:||. For the Dedes it is an absolute must to watch, just like a riveting mini series on TV. As I had them all in one place, I told them what Foreign Correspondent and I had nutted out recently. Surprisingly we received very mixed reactions. I was so convinced they would be excited and I realised I don’t know them as well as I thought I did.
The main reservation was that the Dedes believe most Germans speak better English than they let on. They wouldn’t need the extra summary. Foreign Correspondent just stood there and smiled, but he didn’t try to convince them of his plan. In the end Devil’s Advocate said: “Can we discuss this later? I want to know what Miss Viwi has to say today!” And he invited Foreign Correspondent to take the floor.
Foreign Correspondent stood there calmly, looking very credible, and started his speech: “Thank you Dedes for giving me the opportunity to talk to you tonight. I believe you would like to be known to a wider audience. Is that right?” He paused for effect, and all the Dedes obediently nodded their heads. Then he continued. “I can help you to achieve this and I would be delighted if you would accept my proposal. ” He took charge of the computer and switched to Miss Viwi’s page.
“First of all, I want to thank Miss Viwi again for her kindness in publishing a series about the background of the Dedes. Let’s see what she has to say:”
{dede puppets | second act}
[The book:]
‘Hermit’s web or the few friends I need, I hand-craft myself’. The story of this book introduces the first fifteen Dede characters.
dietlind: „The idea for the story was conceived when someone I didn’t know invited me to become friends on face book. Not only was this person a stranger to me, I don’t have a face book page. So I go on and tell the world that I have enough to do with my real friends, my Dedes. The book is written in easy-to-understand English, similar to the blog.
[the blog]
dietlind: „I started the blog shortly before the book was launched. An artist friend of mine had advised me to document the entire process. A year on, I am really happy I have heeded this advice. The thought of selling [the puppets ] has disappeared into thin air and the blog has definitely strengthened the relationship between the Dedes and myself.
top left to right.: Detail, Snippedy, Devil, Mouse and Socialite || below left to right: Monkey, Pig, Professor, L’Artiste Dede, Foxy Lady and Fairy Godmother
miss viwi: So you can’t imagine selling puppets?
dietlind: „Not at the moment. In particular not those that appear on the blog and there is no way I could part with the first ones, the ones from the book. But at one stage there will be so many, and I should be able to let some go. I can envisage, though, creating some puppets specifically for an exhibition and to sell them before I get used to them, before I come up with their character traits.“
[Exhibition]
Exhibitions are a relatively new subject for the artist, she never considered it with her previous work, but „The Dede puppets are a category of their own, they really want to be seen.“
Apart from a few low key photographic exhibitions, the puppets were on show at the book launch.
Book launch April 2012, Auckland, Visitor examines L’Artiste Dede (Foto: © Sonya Roussina)
An installation by the artist Dietlind Wagner had been selected as a finalist in New Zealand’s prestigeous „Wallace Art Awards“. The installation of five dede puppets was exhibited in a gallery in Auckland.
Further solo exhibitions are planned for 2013.dietlind: „I also had two workshops for Senior Citizens and would love to explore this area further. Hand puppets are often used in therapy with kids, but I am convinced they could be equally useful with the elderly.“
—
The interview will continue next Sunday 20/1/13, at 8 am CET at |:::VEGGIETORIA:::|.
P.S.: If you have any queries, wishes or comments feel free to write in
“Good, good” Devil said. “Now, Foreign Correspondent, this was a very literal translation. But you have to prove to us that you can summarise, if we are to give you the responsibility of looking after the Dede’s German blog. So how would you summarise what Miss Viwi has said?” Mouse turned to Devil and gave him a hi-five.
Foreign Correspondent was unfazed and said: “In brief, Dietlind loves us all. And all of us, who are currently in the room are safe. She won’t sell any of us. She believes the blog strengthened our relationship, but she also knows we are attention seekers and she would like to comply by presenting us to the non-digital world in exhibitions and workshops. If you have any queries, leave a comment or send an email!”
“I hope your German summaries are a bit more comprehensive, but I would say give it a go!” Devil concluded.
dedepuppets 