Large marionette Mephistopheles and Faust

This is a Samurai who cannot pick sides.  It is a character derived from the advertisement for a television show that reads: “You cannot be half a gangster” because that is so true!!!! And he is from space.  He is made from Sculpey, wire, and a dress I sewed for him out of Casablanca printed cotton fabric and stretchy silver fabric.  (I will get another picture up!).

Here is the Rod Puppet.  He is a homunculus.  (Which would be an awesome 3D Zoetrope!).

These videos inspired this homunculus (along with Goethe’s Faust Part Two where they all dance around the homunculus in a Classicism-Acid-Fest/Classical Walpurgis Nacht.):

and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4fXllxQa1Y&feature=related

He is made out of tissue paper and paper.  He has a paper mache head and egg carton eyes.  I wanted to make the mouth spring in and out and spiral.  I would love to learn the bubbling technique from Space Balls Pizza the Hutt.

These two fine and distinguished characters are lovers that lived in a fabulous renovated apartment in Chelsea for almost 45 years.  They were forerunners in the 1930′s New York transgender scene and love to boogie woogie. Unfortunately they both died in a tragic accident last week.  Be sure to purchase their commemorative Cabaret album, Panties and Hoses, to be released Spring 2013.

Lindsay Zackeroff wrote also wrote this memorial poem for them:

Sachliche Romanze
Von Lindsay Zackeroff

Es gibt zwei Personen mit Kopf des Mannes und Körper der Frauen.

Der Köpfe sind aus Strumpfhosen und Füllung gemacht.
Die zwei Personen haben keine Arme.
So wählen sie die Zahlen mit ihren Zähnen.
Einer wohnt in Wohnung H und einer wohnt in Wohnung E.

RRRRRRR—klingelte das Telefon in Wohnung E.
RRRRRRRR—klingelte das Telefon in Wohnung E.

Die Geliebten weiß, es ist Zeit.
Nach Hause zu ihrem Geliebten zu gehen.
Einer rannte die Treppe hinauf.
Einer rannte die Treppe hinunter.

Sie traf sich auf der achten Stufe
und sie zerknüllten ihre Gesichter um sich zu küssen.
Sie zerknüllten ihre Gesichter so dicht,
ihre Strumpfhoser-Gesichter platzten an den Nähten.

Därme kam aus ihren Mündern.
Füllung kam aus ihren Köpfen.
Sie gemeinsam versuchten zu Speichern einander
aber sie hatte keine Arme.

Ihre Körper liegen im Treppenhaus.
Ihre entleerten Köpf werfen Schatten
unter der brillanten Glühbirne

und ihre Nachbarn gingen an ihnen vorbei
Die Frauen sind glücklich, weil neue Strumpfhosen fanden

weil die sind schwer zu finden.

My zoetrope originally was going to be :

1. Hand places mouse in front of snake.

2. Snake eats mouse.

3. Mouse morphs (I was really excited about morphing!) into a hand.

4. Hand comes out of snake.

5. Hand grabs a mouse and repeats.

I liked the whole 90′s alt vision of biting the hand that feeds, then turns out to be nourishment.

I watched a lot of great videos of snakes eating mice (and there are a lot of vicious youtube videos peta would be quite alarmed by, however, I do love this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwolYFGM9pU

Materials: Modeling clay.  It was a great tool to keep shifting.

Frames: Eight.  It was difficult to portray intelligible animals in clay with sixteen frames.

Skills earned: modeling, drawing, animation (mostly through failure to animate).

Here is the video (infinite appreciation and video cred to Peter): http://www.terezakis.org/itp/snake-eats-mouse.mov.zip