How to prepare for an exhibition - from idea to design (experience of a project participant).

Choice of theme.

Exhibitions, especially professional exhibitions, are very important for an artist. It is at the exhibitions that there is an opportunity to get acquainted with the work of the artist, communicate with the author himself and, of course, purchase the works you like from the author directly.

Almost all puppeteers exhibit at exhibitions, regularly or not. I'll tell you about our experience last year. Ours is me, Tatiana Pundeva @tatianapundeva and Elena Fomicheva @pandorishe. 

Two people are both easier and more difficult.

We had to find an interesting topic. And also our dolls had to look good together visually. 

Choosing a theme is a daunting task. First, both of them should like it, highlight our strengths. Secondly, it should have been interesting not only to us, but theoretically and to the public, to be fresh and extraordinary.

From themes came to mind "Hooligan Rococo", "Garden of Eden" with Slavic and floral motifs and, in fact, "Espresso Doppio". We rejected the first two. They could have turned out with us, they would have looked attractive, but they are very common at exhibitions, many have had this.

Elena Fomicheva

Tatiana Pundeva

The Espresso Doppio theme gave room for imagination. Translated, this is Double Coffee, but the play on words hinted at both strong expression and exotic countries. So we decided, because sorting out varieties of coffee and making exclusively black women is boring. The name was associated with the exotic, and with warm countries, and with the people who live there. Therefore, the dolls turned out to be so diverse and interesting, but at the same time they looked good on the podium.

Elena Fomicheva

Tatiana Pundeva

How we chose the place for the dolls in the project compositionally.

The choice of the place of the doll in the exhibition dictates the size of the dolls. Since we had a wall with a good view from afar, it was decided to make 4 large static dolls with a height of 75-80 cm as the center of the composition and several middle boudoir dolls.

Works by Tatiana Pundheva

My dolls are brighter and more stylized, Lenins are more restrained in color and more naturalistic. I didn't really know what would happen, but everything worked out great. We did not develop the wall to the left and right, but put the dolls through one. Brightness and tone alternated and created a single composition.

Registration. It is important!

We had to come up with a design, as it is the second most important thing in the exhibition. At first it was decided that it would not be separate podiums, but a single wooden and authentic podium. The ostensible chaotic boards were designed on a computer drawing. I also made the decor for the wall there. It was a regular cut oracle. We wanted to make everything minimalist for two reasons. The first was for the dolls to be clearly legible and the second was to quickly decorate the exhibition. Generally it seems to me that in the case of exhibitions (especially on walls) it is better to be more modest in terms of decoration than the other way around.

To be honest, we started preparing in advance, almost a year in advance. This does not mean that we have been studying only these all year. Of course not. We just felt so much calmer. After all, preparing for the exhibition is not only about making dolls. This is to take good photos and post on social networks. To come up with a style of project design. Think over the procedure for installation and dismantling.

And more important things.

Unfortunately, some puppeteers neglect an important point - advertising of their project. Nowadays, good, competent photos and decent social networking are a must.

We thought about business cards and brochures, and decided to refuse. Business cards are lost and thrown away, so they just made a link to Instagram on the wall. Who wants to take pictures on the phone. At the same time, the photo of the dolls is nearby, it is easy to remember who we are.

We hope to repeat our interesting experience this year!

Everyone is welcome to the Art of Puppetry exhibition, which this time will take place at a not-so-usual time, due to restrictions.

We are waiting for you at Gostiny Dvor 19.02-22.02. 2021!

Best regards, Tatiana Pundeva.