Library Finger Puppet Workshops

Over the past decade, I’ve partnered with Chicago Public Libraries to various lead interactive felt finger puppet-making workshops. These classes were offered to adult and child audiences, often in honor of monthly celebrations including Women’s History Month and Disability Pride Month.

Planning these workshops challenged me to translate my puppet-making practice into a projects that was accessible to various ages, abilities, and skill levels. I developed a system of printable sheets for each puppet design with template pieces that participants cut out and traced onto fabric. Using the template model also helped those who wanted to create their own character to visualize how they could break down that figure into finger puppet form. The workshops allows attendees to create and experiment creatively, as well as learn about famous and historical figures in a truly hands-on way.

Harold Washington Library Maker Lab

The first class I taught was held as part of the drop-in workshop series at Harold Washington Library’s Maker Lab. Geared towards adults who had some background in crafting, I taught the class basic hand-embroidery techniques as well as simpler glue methods to put together their puppets. The event was held the day that David Bowie passed away unexpectedly and participants spontaneously decided to each create puppets representing an era of Bowie’s career.

Women’s History Month

I was invited to lead a workshop in honor of Women’s History Month in March 2019. For this class I wanted to offer options for famous women from a variety of backgrounds and achievements. I simplified some of my existing designs—Frida Kahlo, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Angela Davis—and researched a handful of new people to celebrate, including Beyoncé, Malala Yousafzai, Yayoi Kusama, and others.

During the workshop, I also encouraged participants to use the techniques we learned to create their own designs for famous women they admired. One favorite was a Sojourner Truth puppet created by a student, pictured below right.

Disability Pride Month

For Disability Pride Month in July, I created a set of puppets representing famous disabled people including Stephen Hawking, Temple Grandin, Helen Keller, Stevie Wonder, and more. This class was presented at Chinatown and Edgewater library locations over the course of the month and attended primarily by young people and families.

To ensure that the process was accessible to people with as many different ability levels as possible, I created not only the cut-out worksheets, but also some kits with pre-cut felt pieces that could be pieced together by the participant.