Wednesday, February 25, 2015

RECENT PROJECTS - Omar, the puppet.


This is Omar.


 He's a very well-dressed puppet, and he's recently visited our workshop to find a suitable (permanent) display in his owner's home. 

Dana (his lucky owner) says: 
"A friend of mine traveled to Burma (now Myanmar) and bought him during her visit.  That was at least 15 years ago (when it was still called Burma).  She brought him back and he's been traveling with me ever since!  Omar has lived in Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, Sonoma, and now Cville!  Quite a well-traveled puppet!"



The first challenge in this perfect mid-winter-storm project was to find a frame that was tall enough to accommodate his bulging little belly.
I ended up extending/building up the back on this Max Moulding vintage gold speckled 3" shadow box frame and I then re-finished the sides again to match the front.


We decided to let Omar dance inside the box. I chose to raise his arms with the help of some silk wrapped wood blocks, to add a bit more depth and movement to the composition.

I also loosened and flared his garment a bit and stitched it onto the backing, to add some extra interest and to show off the beautiful workmanship and design. He is floating on a chai colored Bainbridge natural silk backing As an extra pop, we decided to add a beautiful Marsala colored silk to line the edges of the interior of the box.


 Above, here he is, happily dancing away...


... and below, in his final new housing, looking at the world with his intense gaze.
Naturally, we used the virtually invisible Museum glass choice.
He will be living on a soft gold and coral striped wallpaper and I cannot wait to see what he will think of his new surroundings.



A great big THANK YOU to Dana for sharing this beautiful piece with everyone!

Keep bringing us your beautiful ideas - working on these special projects is such creative fun!
Thanks for popping by, I hope you are feeling inspired!

Beate


c|2015
Charlottesville, VA

LUCIA


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