GIRLS NIGHT!
I made it in today a little past 6. Cecilia was there and she and I got a lot of stuff done. We attached the dad to the chair, attached the chair and couch to the wall, completely finished the clock, glued the worm to the wall, made the kitchen backdrop, gesso'd the frame, fixed the dad's eyes, fixed the pole the dad's head is on and... (other miscellaneous things like that). Then, Jan came in and took over... so there is even MORE progress than I can post! Cecilia if you didn't get my note I accidentally ruined the fridge while I was painting the kitchen-- can you print out another one?

Group: If you guys ever need anything from me or need me to come in and help with something... don't hesitate to call me. My number is: 904- 476- 6040.

;-)

I'm going to get into the studio tomorrow at some point... probably around 5 or 5:30. So I will probably end up seeing Cecilia there... if any one else wants to come in it could be a group party-- YAY! AHHHH so much work at the end of the year!!!! But I have to say... I really
RESPECT
THE
PUPPET...
and everything that goes into their shows. Puppets. :: I mean come on what in the our collective consciousness could ever be cooler?::
... (penguins don't count)
Puppets remind me that art should make people smile. Smiling is good... and so few people genuinely do it today. Smiling is just as important as gravity.

hey, just wanted to let you know again that I won't be able to meet today til around 5 or 6 pm but i can stay as long as needed so i can pick up where you guys leave off.

Above: Finished at last!

Below: We have a lot of work to do in little time. Lets put in some hard time and hopefully everyone can contribute in their own way. Mapped out below is what we talked about doing to the set in class today. So lets all get into the studio at some time (whether on our own or in a group) and get this stuff done.

I'm still not feeling much better, but I went into the studio today a little before 1. I painted the worm and epoxied it to a maroon base. Then I cut the base with angles and curves to make it look more interesting. I ended up making all of the shadow puppets (their wings flap too). I used rubber bands as the springs to make the wings move when the birds fly. I tested out thin wire before using the rubber bands, but it was too flimsy and didn't work well. The rubber bands were bouncier and flatter. Now all that's left to do is get some fishing wire and string them up (I put the other dowel in the shadow box so now all that's left is notching those). Jan and Cecilia came in today too. Jan's got an EXCELLENT start going for the script!!! Cecilia was working on the dad's wings. She attached them and tried to figure out how to get them to move on command.

Hey guys. Sorry I missed today, but it turns out I've got the sickness. Yesterday, I picked up some dowels for the shadow stage. Also, I've got this weird stuff called Stich Witchery witch is an iron on hemming thing for fabric. We can make curtains and stuff with this. It's really really easy and it probably looks pretty good (I haven't tried it out yet). Other than that, I think we need some different cloth for the curtains. I'll see if I can find some scrap stuff lying around. Are we still on for the Sunday at 1? I can try to make it if I'm feeling a little better.

No pictures today. Progress was boring looking with the set being covered in buckets and all. Jan and I cut up the back of the stage (through the wallpaper backing) and reinforced it by wood gluing it to the cardboard box. We discovered the kitchen thing I made isn't going to work. Then we thought of some ideas for props. I made a plaque for a "stuffed worm" on their wall. I cut the wood and made the worm out of epoxy clay. I think we should go crazy with the set. For the egg's crib area we could have egg cartons and we could put a spin on some house hold products and set them in there. I don't know I was just thinking that since birds tend to gather random things from the ground to make their nests out of we could make stuff out of random household objects... we could have for example a fork chandelier we could throw a book on the coffee table "To kill a human" or something like that instead of "To kill a mockingbird". Why can't we just do stuff like that? It's not like we have a story to mess up or anything. I think we should leave props 'til later when everyone can imput what they want in the house, but everyone should feel free to bring whatever or make whatever for the set.

Happy Thirsty Kitty!

Pictures!

Mike and I finished constructing the shadow stage today. We drilled holes for the rods and attached the shadow material to the frame with a staple gun. We worked today on finishing up painting the birds (which is done for the most part). I ended up adding feathery highlights, contour lines, and huge eyelashes to the mother bird's head. I really like the way she turned out. I think on Sunday I will be going in to the studio to finish up the shadow puppets and attach them to the frame. This way we won't have to worry about that part of the show and we can focus on set details and the dreaded dialogue. For next class we really need to get some scrap wood to line the outside of the box... I also think for next class that we need to break up into more distinct groups (with 3 ppl. each)... it would be cool to be working simultaneously on the set and the puppets so that we have time to work out the rough spots before the show.

Meet the finches-- psychedelic alien birds come to take over the world! Yeah so the highlight of my day was sawing. Jan and I (with generous help from Arturo) sawed the crap out of some wood for the shadow stage. Once wee got the pieces cut wee had to even them out with the table saw. Arturo did this while the saw shot pieces of wood at Jan and I at extreme velocities. Then wee managed to glue the wood while Arturo used the nail gun on the edges. Then wee made reinforcements out of scrap wood and glued them to the frame. To make sure the frame stayed straight wee clamped it to the table.
Wee!

Today we did a lot of work outside of class. Cecilia and I decided to angle the backdrop inside the box for better side viewing from the audience. I cut the foam core to line the inside and she worked out the flooring, which will be covered with hay next class. Then, her and Matt wallpapered the foam core-- it looks AWESOME-- while Jan and I painted the egg, one of the bird kids, and the father's head (Check out her blog for the pictures). We checked them under the stage lights and they looked great together (I had to fix the colors a little on the dad's head). We were talking a little about the script today and it might be kind of funny if the egg is kind of cheesy. He could say something like "you guys really CRACK me up" or make him seem really frustrated with being an egg and unable to move around...

Thursday: The group is continuing to work on the puppets. There have been a few problems about the puppet's basic functions (we were going to control them from underneath, but after testing it out we decided from behind would be better), but everything should work out ok. I've been working on the set and shadow construction We decided to line the main stage with foam core. I cut a hole for the mom's kitchen window and painted the walls of the recessed kitchen yellow. Jan painted the coffee table.

The images above are for the construction of the shadow stage, which I will be building on Sunday (hopefully with the help of someone else in my group that has had experience with these things). The stage will be rectangular and about as big as the box. It needs to have poles coming out of the back at the four corners. These poles will be attached to two horizontally parallel bars. The bars will have small notches cut in them where each shadow puppet will be located. Each shadow puppet will be able to move up and down only (for our fly away scene). The will be strung through the notches and moved by rotating the clear fishing line they are attached to. Their wings will be attached to their bodies with hand made springs that will "bob" when the puppets are moved.

Things I will bring on Sunday at 1 pm: Foam Core, very thin wire, and clear fishing line.

If at least one other person will work with me on the set I believe we can get it done really quickly. We can divide the work up into shadow stage construction and actual stage construction.