Stephanie’s magical puppets

Art Teacher Stephanie Vandem, gets her ‘friends,’
several large puppets she has made, out of the big
cardboard box that they have to be hidden away in, to
avoid frightening the students

Ms Vandem and her puppets, in St Ignatius School’s
art room

Friday,  February 10, 2006

Although Stephanie Vandem currently teaches art at St Ignatius School, she trained as a costume designer at Wimbledon College of Art in London, after finishing a foundation course in Fashion at St Martins College. 

Ms Vandem changed from studying fashion to studying costume design because, as she said: “I love the theatre and history, and people’s lives; why they dress in certain ways. I wanted to do something more historical.” 

Ms Vandem grew up in Brazil where she attended a school which did not teach any expressive arts such as music or drama, and her only artistic outlet as a child was making her own clothes. 

Recently Ms Vandem encouraged the St Ignatius students to make their own costumes too, from recycled material such as cardboard packaging, for a special costume parade put on by the school.

Ms Vandem has, hidden away in her classroom, some beautiful puppets which she made. The puppets were shown last year at Art@Governors, and she clearly has a passion for making them. 

It is a way of relaxing, as she gets lost in the creative process:

“When I get some clay, to make the puppet’s head, I start off by not really thinking about the shape I am making. It’s a case of just letting your hands do the work,” she said.

“I become aware of the puppet’s personality when I am making it. Its personality becomes apparent in the early stages, and you cannot fundamentally change it after that stage.”

All Ms Vandem’s puppets clearly have very strong personalities.

“I have to keep them in this cardboard box, because they sometimes frighten the children, although they fascinate them too,” she said.

As well as its own character, each puppet has its own distinctive story. 

Pointing to the puppet of an old, heavily made-up woman, she said, “This one is about the old women you sometimes see putting on heavy make-up and are extremely thin. They become grotesque, really, because they cannot accept the fact they are growing old.”

“Then there is this one, the Duchess,” she said, pointing to another puppet. 

“The Duchess has married a much older man for money, and has been having an affair with a younger man. She is very manipulative,” Ms Vandem explained.

Ms Vandem starts making the puppets in several different ways, but always, she begins with the face.

“Some are made out of clay or modeling material which I cover with wood-filler,” she said. “Some of the other ones are made of paper mush, which is newspapers mixed with water and then glue. Other puppet faces are foam filled, and covered with fabric, like cushions.” 

Fabrics are then chosen for the clothes. “I concentrate on the shoulders, because the clothes will hang from them. Some of the puppets have movable parts, like arms and heads. There are basically three ways of animating a puppet, by rods, strings or by putting your hands through the puppets’ sleeves. 

“I am not consciously trying to communicate anything through making them. I just want to make them. But they are a result of my choices; they reflect things that are important to me.” 

“This is how I play; its like meditation, and it’s got nothing to do with anybody else. It’s like the way a child plays when they are not aware anyone else is listening to them,” she explained.

“I am interested in puppetry mainly because they have a magic power. When you are seeing a puppet show, you know it is not a real person speaking, yet you believe it is. You become a child again; and can live in that world of pure imagination again,” she said.

christopher@caymannetnews.com

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