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Currently viable crafts

 

Puppet making

 

The making of puppets, movable models of people/animals usually moved by strings controlled from above or by a hand inside, and usually for use in puppet theatre.

 

Status Currently viable
Historic area of significance
Area currently practised
Origin in the UK

 

History

Puppet making must be viewed in the context of puppet theatre, as the two are dependent on each other. Puppets are increasingly used in all types of entertainment, so it seems highly probable that the craft of puppet making is also growing.

 

Techniques

 

Local forms

 

Sub-crafts

 

Issues affecting the viability of the craft

There are very few people who actually train to make puppets. The poorer work tends to come from makers who are not puppeteers because they are less likely to take into account the issues of performance, such as the effects of weight and other implications that relate only to performance.

 

Support organisations

Craftspeople currently known

  • Caroline Astell-Burt
  • Chris Wylie
  • John Roberts
  • Lyndie Wright
  • Stephen Mottram
  • Toby Olie

There is a list of puppet makers on the Puppeteers UK website.

Other information

 

References