Custom Made Masks

"The real stars of Master Peter's Puppet Show [El Retablo de Maese Pedro] were the 'puppets' themselves. Director Holly Adams did a superb job of directing her live cast in the art of acting like puppets . . . The masks [of the 'puppets'] also elicited much admiration, with their bulging cheeks and facial features rolled into expressive grimaces. There ought to be a museum for them to be displayed in when they're not being used." Mark Simon, on the Ithaca Opera's production of Master Peter's Puppet Show, by Manuel de Falla.

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Masks are said to be spirit-houses, and the most inviting become inhabited. A mask that houses a spirit has 'taksu'; it is, in some sense, alive. I love everything about masks--I am in awe of them, their power, their mystery, their grace.

Mask Making Although I have proficiency in many mask-making media, I recommend (and prefer) Aquaplast (that being said, if you would prefer another medium, please ask and I will happily oblige!).

Aquaplast is NOT plaster--it is a plastic used by physicians for splints and neck braces, and so on.

What makes it a fantastic material FOR YOU?

UNLIKE papier mache, latex, rubber, leather, and many other mediums that ABSORB the wearers' sweat, breath, germs, mucus, et cetera, Aquaplast does not. Moreover, it can be cleaned with rubbing alcohol or any other cleanser, so can be safely used by multiple performers in a company and even generations of classroom students

UNLIKE many mask-making materials, Aquaplast resists decay. A mask increases in meaning, "weight" and value with each successive performer, and the stories of those who have worn it are passed down from one performer to the next, or even from parents to children, to grandchildren. Such practices are in keeping with the centuries-old traditions of masked performers!

Masks made of porcelain or wood also have longevity and can be cleaned, albeit only carefully. Unfortunately, they are fragile. For a touring company, the director of an outdoor show, or a theatre teacher, a mask that may shatter if bumped, dropped or inadvertently sat upon is often too great a risk for an investment of time, and/or money. Aquaplast will not shatter, break, crack, etcetera--just don't leave it on the radiator or the dashboard of your car, windows up, on a hot afternoon in July (but you wouldn't be that careless!)

When I make masks on commission, I ask a lot of questions about style, tone, imagery, cultural/textural/color/shape influences, performance arena, and so on. I then submit a series of draft sketches along with suggestions and ideas I have. From these conversations and supporting research, I create the "Base sculptures" upon which the "rough draft" of the aquaplast will be thrown. I like to show the client the base sculpture and/or the aquaplast draft, but that is not always feasible. I then make alterations and refinements to the plastic form, then paint it. After approval of the client, I seal the paint with a protective matte or gloss (client's choice) coating. I love my masks, so in the unlikely event that a client would like me to do something completely different, I will keep the original and create a new design.

As a mask maker, I always have the sense of whispering into a void of palpable darkness, straining to hear the returning whispers, then adjusting my creation (the mask-in-process) as I continue to hone in on a particular thrum, inviting the 'thrummer' to come and visit the home I have built for it. Sounds strange, I know, but I think all art is like that--some weird, multisensory, searching process that involves the energies of ourselves, of the being or character in question, and of the audience or artistic context. Performing (especially masked performing) is certainly like that. In any case, it makes for good product.

Gallery

Here are some examples of work I've made in the past. I will create a custom mask, made to YOUR specifications.

Please take a look at the gallery and then contact me by phone or email to begin the process of having your own mask made or use our online order form and begin the process right now!
 

Barong, Balinese series	Enamored Moor, from El Retablo de Mase Pedro	Aonbarr in process, close up
	Commedia-17c style
Brighella	Dottore	Pantalone
Barong II-Balinese Series	Old Man C	Don Gayferos, from El Retablo de Maese Pedro
Forgall, close up		Rangda, Balinese series
Sky Chief	Silk Road	Ismene
Forgall, Celtic series	Titania's Headdress
Aonbarr		Tempest
Princess of the Sky, clay form		Sky Chief, close up
Ghosts