Below are the finished wire armatures of the three main characters in my film. From right to left these are the Actress (Elle), the Mail Man (Roy) and the Theatre Usher. Each armature is constructed using the same principles of twisted aluminium wire and K&S tubing for replaceable limbs.
Below is the armature for Roy the
Mail Man. This is one of two identical armatures I've made of this character.
Mail Man. This is one of two identical armatures I've made of this character.
Next is the armature for Elle the Actress. She has a for feminine figure
I added steel wire to the feet to act as heels. These will strengthen the feet and give me a base to work on when I sculpt the shoes later.
The Theatre Usher's armature is a lot bulkier than the others. I used thicker twists of wire to help support the puppets larger size. At this stage the character looks short compared to the others. When the puppet is bulked out and his large shoulders are added he will end up being the biggest character in the film.
You might noticed that these puppets have ball and socket joints for necks. In my next post I will explain how I made them and why I decided to use them at the neck.
Hey there,
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to let you know I'm really impressed! Keep up the good work :) I will stay visiting to see the rest of the process.. amazing it is :)
Greetings,
Niek
very very very good work !
ReplyDeleteHi! I love your work, and I was just wondering, how do you make replaceable arms/legs? Could you explain in more detail? Thanks :)
ReplyDeleteHowdy Tiffany,
DeleteOK, as you probably know, aluminium wire armatures are prone to breaking after repetitive movement. The armatures you see above are designed to break apart into individual parts so that they can be replaced if they break. (its much easier than rebuilding the whole thing)
To achieve this we used square K&S brass tubing. This tubing comes in various sizes that can fit inside each other with a good tight fit.
As an example, a length of K&S tubing is located on the torso at the hips. Then a smaller length of K&S is attached to the top of the leg. This allows the leg to slot into the hip.
The aluminium wire is attached to the K&S wire using epoxy glue.
It's a bit tricky to explain but if you look at the armature layout diagrams in this post it should help illustrate how it works.-
http://nathan-flynn.blogspot.co.uk/2011/02/armature-designs.html#.VNv2Ky7FPYh
I hope that helps and if you have any more questions I’m happy to help. :)