the ear of the tempo

Manette is a marionette in two parts; skin and frame. The garment is made of sheer organdy fabric and small pieces of fused interfacing in the shapes from the carrier woodblock prints. The frame is made of wood reed, wound into disks and joined into a torso, two arms, and two legs. Each segment is wrapped with muslin, and pre-soaked in wood glue for agility. Yarn is wrapped around the structure for softness. The segments are joined by lines of crochet at the joints. the frame goes into the garment. Strings extending from a crossbar control movement at the waist, ankles, and hands. Manette is held high behind a paper screen with a bright light on one side, and a video-camera on the other. This moving image and sound is the film the ear of the tempo. afterwards, sounds are found to accompany these rhythms.