The making of Peckham Theatre (part 1)

After researching on the paper theatre, I decided to make a larger one out of cardboard so it is more sturdy and less fancy. Fancy is not for Peckham.

Things I've learnt from the paper theatre: 

- foldability makes it convenient to store

- the frames/ sticks obtruding from characters and objects disturbed the visual as a whole

-don't have to allocate slots so elements can be placed more freely

-elements can be more versatile for mix and match

1. Building the stage

I started with making the "book cover" leaving a spine in between. I want my theater to be foldable too so it is easy to carry around.

I made the front shorter than the actual height of the theatre, so it can be folded backwards and fit neatly within the "book".

But without the supports it is a bit wobbly.

I then realized that the thickness of the "book"'s spine isn't enough, so I took the theater apart and reattached a thicker spine.

Then I added supports on the side to make the theater more stable. I cut slots so I can just insert them in.

Better!

2. Making the stage scenes and people

Here's the wide range of ephemera (trash) I collected in the Peckham area, including: flyers in the Bussey building, literal trash on the ground (a squashed redbull can, subway wrapping, receipts) etc. Even the cardboard is discarded in front of a groceries store in Peckham.

Note: I kept the unintentional water stain as part of the project on the cheaply-printed flyer. Which belonged to the only exhibition that was open the time when I went to the Bussey building?

Starting to make scenes. The interior of the Copeland and Bussey building is the first one I made, which I really wanted it to have a window. So I built the base on an old plastic folder I had.

It turned out to be one of my favourite backdrops. The window stills keep falling off from the plastic, for some reason, but I guess that resembles part of Peckham. I love adding small details such as pamphlets and flyers on the wall, and the broken part of the window.

I drew characters on the flyers I collected as well. I tried to represent different types of people seen in Peckham, such as this young woman casually using her phone while smoking in from of Christ's Gospel, (and did not care when I took pictures of her) which to me formed some sort of epiphanic narrative. 

Here she is, in contrast with the children in the same church where I revisited on a Sunday morning (very unintentionally).

This is not the messiest table I have ever had.

Everything put together. It feels weird of course if the scenes are forced together and unorganized, such as appreciating art in the middle of the road in Peckham. 

At the same time, the logos of big brands and corporates really popped and stood out from others, which is something I am aiming for. Via gentrification they are replacing older, local businesses with their bright logos and appealing graphics, interestingly all red and white.

Everything together like a puzzle.