Video & Animation
"El Show Extravagancia de Muñecas de Cartón" is a vibrant and fun animated "variety show" video that features marionette puppetry and stop motion animation. The dolls represented in this video are paper maché dolls made in Mexico, commonly known as muñecas de papel or Lupita dolls (and other names).
These dolls have a history of about two hundred years. A time period when slavery existed in Mexico but was outlawed before the US Civil War, while simultaneously the indigenous populations were greatly mistreated and disrespected. Mexican artisans made these inexpensive cardboard dolls for the daughters of poor families unable to afford porcelain dolls prior to the invention of plastic dolls. I intentionally included the elements of diversity and equity in my interpretation of these dolls, inclusive of all skin colors including little girls of Indigenous and African descent, especially in Mexico. I dreamed that every little girl in the history of these dolls could see themselves as beautiful with brightly colored dresses, jewelry, and flowers in their hair or wearing stylish hats.
These paper maché dolls began to be less popular with children sometime after 1945 with the invention of plastic dolls, and they began to be used by adult women for other purposes. The varied stories blur the line between fact and fiction. My focus of the dolls is in their intended original creation for children, but adults and children alike will enjoy this film. The resulting video, "El Show Extravagancia de Muñecas de Cartón" is a vibrant, mesmerizing and really fun animated "variety show" for the viewer. Everything dances in my video. Even the flowers dance! It is a celebration of my Hispanic heritage that I am very proud of, and pay tribute to.
Created for "Muñecas en la Calle Guadalupe exhibition, curated by Elizabeth Rodriguez https://events.getcreativesanantonio.com/artist/elizabeth-rodriguez/
Many thanks to Elizabeth for the exhibition invitation and for donating and loaning dolls to me for use in this project. These dolls would not have come to life without the support and excited encouragement of you and Huge thanks also to Sarah Fox, for teaching me the art of transforming some of the dolls I used into marionettes, and working with me to film the finished dolls. I am forever grateful for the new skills.