OPEN DOOR DESIGNS IS GOING TO THE ONTARIO LIBRARY ASSOCIATION SUPERCONFERENCE

FEBRUARY 24-26, 2010
Conference Registrants visit our booth: T23

EXPO EXHIBIT HOURS
Thursday - 10:00 am - 5:30 pm
Friday - 9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Metro Toronto Convention Centre

OPEN DOOR DESIGNS was recently featured on savvymom.ca in an article by Martha Cass. Click Here to see it.

Over the next 3 months Open Door Designs will be creating a dedicated workshop space in the basement. It will allow us to provide more workshops, more often. Workshops are multi-tasking places and if you have any suggestions, recommendations or ideas please let us know. We are in the process of creating the wish list and clearing the space so that it can be framed and insulated. We anticipate that it will be completed, hopefully, by the end of April .

KELLY KIRKHAM
PAPIER MÂCHÉ WORKSHOP
January 17, 2010

Once again we had a full complement at Kelly's workshop and some truly stunning puppets, as you can see, were produced. Click here to see a more comprehensive slide show. If you are interested in future workshops please email us to get on the list.

These links & things are odds and ends I have either tripped over during online journeys or people have sent me. If you have your own favourite puppet links please send them along!

A recent arrival to Open Door Designs, Topo Giogio, reminded me of my mostest favourite puppet ever...and so I went in search of some information and this synopsis from somewhere online (I apologize, I can't find it again). The Youtube video is fabulous.

"History of Topo Gigio: The delightful little Italian mouse was created by Maria Perego from Milan, Italy. Topo Gigio had already been around for awhile before Ed Sullivan, but almost everybody remembers him best for being a recurring guest on "The Ed Sullivan Show". Topo Gigio was the star of his own Italian movie in 1961 called "Le Avventure di topo Gigio" ("The Adventures of Topo Gigio"). In 1965, this film would be released on CBS-TV and called "The Magic World of Topo Gigio". However, Topo made his first American appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show" on April 14, 1963. In 1965, Mrs. Maria Perego Caldura received an American patent for the complex mechanisms of the Topo Gigio puppet. It took three people to operate Topo Gigio, with a fourth supplying the voice.

Topo was ten inches tall and made of a half pound of foam rubber. He was controlled by sticks (not strings, like most puppets). The puppeteers wore black hoods, black velour clothing, and worked against a black backdrop so they were invisible to the audience. And if you remember seeing Topo, you KNOW they're invisible. The little mouse looks like he's a lifeform of his own!
The puppeteers moved Topo with their hands and three inch sticks. Maria Perego, Topo's creator, moved Topo's mouth and legs. Frederico Giolo moved Topo's arms, while his wife Annabella controlled the puppets oversized ears. The man who gave Topo his voice was Peppino Mazullo (some sources have called him Giuseppe Mazullo), who provided it offstage."

This delightful website is very child-friendly and interactive. Kept me busy for a while exploring!
The Poppenspeelmuseum is in Vorchten, Holland.

"The Center for Puppetry Arts' mission is to entertain and enlighten audiences, nurture the world community of artists, expand the puppetry art form, and explore the past, present, and future of puppetry."

 

They actually have some of the real Orlando puppets!

"Stony Creek's unique, year-round performing arts center presents a wide variety of plays, musicals, dinner theater, puppet shows and children's programs. We are housed in a quaint, century-old theater. Our rare Sicilian hand-made puppets and the shows in which they star have been seen by audiences since 1963."

Puppet House Theater
128 Thimble Islands Road
Stony Creek, CT. 06405
Phone (203) 488-5752

I don't know who made this puppet but isn't he beautiful?

 

IPANA TOOTHPASTE MARIONETTE

24" advertising marionette from Bristol-Meyers, the Ipana Toothpaste character. Circa 1930's. Painted composition body with movable Ipana letters, wood arms and legs, and rubber hands.

John lives in the neighbourhood and was a participant in Alexander Mergold's Marionette Workshop in November. He is hoping to add puppets to the list of his accomplishments! Visit his website to see what he can do!

"Comedy, comedy, comedy. That's what this act is all about. But John Park is no joke-telling stand-up comic. Instead, this performer uses clever juggling and visually engaging comedy routines set to music to make his audience laugh. The crowd is with John all the way - even on stage, as volunteers take part and challenge John laugh for laugh for the comedic spotlight."

RED WAGON COLLECTIVE: DONATIONS NEEDED:
wool, embroidery floss, needles, crochet hooks, old sweaters

RED WAGON COLLECTIVE was formed in 2006 in response to our desire to deepen our artistic, collaborative, and community-engaged practices through residency projects that would enable us to develop both intensive and extensive relationships in the Junction - a rapidly changing neighbourhood in Toronto's west end. We share a desire to work collaboratively with artists and non-artists to create work that inspires new conversations; softens boundaries between groups separated by age, culture, ability, and economic status; promotes the presence of art in everyday life and contributes to increasing public engagement in community development. The work we create with communities is used in producing exhibitions, public installations, and celebratory performance events.We are currently working within the walls of the Evangeline Shelter.

Sunday February 21, 2010
12:30PM - 6PM
(Barn #2) Artscape Wychwood Barns
601 Christie St

more info