G. Piekuras admits that this offer to create a copy seemed like a challenge to him, so he considered whether to take on this order. Still, he agreed and is satisfied with the process and the result. “We have many talented artists and it is important to remember them and remind them of them. This was one of the main reasons for undertaking this work. The goal was to create the most realistic puppet-marionette of S. Ušinskas. A marionette is a bit different than a doll, it has a mechanical part. I created a doll that looks like a marionette,” said G. Piekuras.
in 1940 May 28 The marionette technology created by S. Ušinska is patented in the United States of America. The film “The Fat Dream” (1938) together with the drawings and patent documents of the marionette constructions were included in the Lithuanian national register of the UNESCO program “Memory of the World”. It is not for nothing that the pioneer of our professional puppet theater, S. Ušinskas, called marionettes “moving sculptures” – his puppets are artistically equal to the artist’s famous stained glass windows, paintings, scenography. The Lithuanian Theater, Music and Cinema Museum is pleased with the collection of Ušinska marionettes.
The marionette copy was created on a reduced scale due to the specifics of the premises where it will be exhibited. There is a memorial room of S.Ušinskas in the roof of the Pakruoj firemen’s association. His original oven, where stained glass was “baked”, other exhibits and lots of interactive information are exhibited here.
The creative process was really interesting for G. Piekur. The comedy “The Fat Man’s Dream” made a big impression on him. The film tells about Fatty’s failed attempt to find the girl of his dreams. “Now a lot is created with the help of IT and AI, the possibilities are much wider. However, the black-and-white film created almost 90 years ago already has a mobile plot scenography, an interesting abstract sound background of the voice, and spatial effects were possible at that time”, G. Piekuras shares his impressions.
During the entire creative process, G. Piekuras consulted with the director of the Lithuanian Puppet Theater, artist Rima Driežius. According to the sculptor, R.Driežis was a precise consultant and critic from the first to the last minute: “As a puppeteer, he knows the spirit of Ušinskas, feels his dolls”.
Photo by Z. Nekrošius/G. Piekur created a copy of Ušinsk’s marionette Storulis
Another challenge was the puppet’s clothes. The marionette in the museum is wearing a sweater, and in the movie, a jacket. G. Piekuras recreated the Fat Man’s clothes seen in the film, but “the film is black and white, you can see the patterns, but not the colors”. So the sculptor consulted with clothing designer Violeta Bytautaite.
UAB “Idėja 3D” scanned the head, hands and feet of the original and reduced it to 70%. full scale sculpture and printed copies of these body parts. Another part of the body, the overall construction of the body was created by G. Piekuras. When asked what this replica is made of, he answers – metal, plastic, fabric and “further a mystery.”
While watching the character in the film, G. Piekuras realized that Fat “has a dozen times more joints than usual”. The result is a replica of the sculptor that moves much like the original in the movie.
During this creative process, G. Piekuras looked at a slightly different creative field: “When stepping into a foreign field, in this case the field of marionette theater, there is always a feeling of caution. You enter, you make friends with the locals and your horizons expand in every sense – you get to know different artists, different materials and different solutions”.
While creating a copy of Storulis, G. Piekuras had the opportunity to become more familiar with the work of S. Ušinskas: “When you undertake the immortalization of a historical personality, you expand the boundaries of knowledge, reveal certain new details, and wipe the dust off the artist’s name…”
in 1939 the movie “The Fat Man’s Dream” was shown in New York. Artist Stasys Ušinskas created a collection of universal dolls, planning to use them for various future cinema and theater productions. By changing the details of the dolls (costumes, facial fragments, headdresses), he adapted them to a specific character. For example, the doll, 1936 played the main role of Silvestro Dūdelė in the play “Silvestras Dūdelė”, played two different characters in the 1938 film “The Fat Man’s Dream”.
The Museum of Lithuanian Theatre, Music and Cinema takes care of the restoration of marionettes in order to restore the internal mechanisms of the puppets. Usually, an artist draws a sketch of a doll, and the doll is realized and the mechanisms are created by the puppeteers. S. Ušinskas did everything himself, so his dolls are the author’s works of the artist.
Gediminas Piekuras – Lithuanian sculptor, son of I. Piekurs and MTRožanskaitė, brother of M. Piekurs. G. Piekuras in 1987 graduated from the Lithuanian Art Institute. Since 1988 participates in exhibitions since 1992 – LDS member, since 1987. teaches at J. Vienožinskis art school, since 2010 – and at the Čiurlionis School of Arts in Vilnius. Creates projects in public spaces. For example, in 2018, a monument designed by him to Jonas Basanavičis was unveiled near Aušra Gate. Works have been purchased by Lithuanian and foreign collectors. Lives and works in Vilnius.
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