Challenge Eight - Puppet!

Ever since I was a kid, I have loved playing with puppets. As a grown up, I still enjoy it. It's just that now, I'm better at it.

Here's a puppet play we made for cable access television a few years back. The Importance of Being Santa

You can write a play and make the puppets to fit, you can make puppets and buld a play around them, or you can make a puppet and hang it on the wall.

When it comes to mixing fun with art, puppets can't be beat!

Materials

 * Paper bags (any size - you can cover any printing on the bag with paper or incorporate it into your final design)
 * Markers or crayons that show up on the paper bags you've selected
 * Stuff from the junk drawer, stickers, pictures from magazines, anything else you want to use to enhance your puppet

What To Do
Sketch out the figure lightly with pencil. Many times the puppet's mouth is as wide as the bag, but don't feel as if you're restricted that way. You can draw the mouth and chin to fit your character.

Decorate the puppet as elaborately as you like. What's fun about paper bag puppets is you can't "overdo" it. The more you put on, the more ridiculous they become, which is sort of the point.

Why Do It?
While we can all take art serioiusly, being "serious" all the time can hamper our creative instincts. Whimsy and experimentation add life to our work. Creating something for the pure joy of play can reinvigorate all of our creative instincts, sort of a palate-cleanser that clears the mind for creating "real" art, so to speak.

My definition of art is any creative endeavor that brings satisfaction to the artist and to those who appreciate the work. There's no reason that your puppet shouldn't end up displayed in the Louvre one day, as part of your complete catalogue!