Clive Hicks-Jenkins, artist and former (and future?) puppeteer, was kind enough to share some of the photos from a recent trip to Prague (all photos are by Peter Wakelin – thank you, too, Peter!). Have a look – they are just fantastic.

Enter the Unima Puppet Centre, in Prague, wherein you will see. . .

. . . this dashing fellow: a limewood skeleton puppet.

I love the insouciance of his cocked ankle. In death, all costumes are off (and the need for them, too).

These childlike, pastel, charming creatures are marionettes from the 1960′s. In his email, Clive notes that they “reflected . . .the kind of simplified design which was prevalent in Czech animated film at that time, which in its turn influenced film animation around the world, including the UK, Canada and the US.” They evoke quite a different feeling in the viewer than these next marionettes, from the 19th Century – much more Saturday night at the Poppy . . . As I wrote to Clive, seeing all these puppets (and the other photos he sent as well) makes me want to jump onto a plane and GO.