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Crafty Tuesday: Happy Birthday Jim Henson
Sep. 24th, 2019 09:44 amToday is Jim Henson’s Birthday.
His influence on my work can be seen in every puppet I make.
If not for his creative work, I do not think I would be creating mine.
Jim Henson encouraged people to be creative and to think outside the box for solutions to what one wanted to do. He didn’t start out being a puppeteer but became one when he had the opportunity to work in television. He found people whose creativity and abilities filled in gaps in his abilities. He knew how to assemble a team and make magic.
He was a doodler extraordinaire. His papers are covered in all kinds of pictures and geographic designs. He was doing zentangle before there was zentangle. I love looking at those pages and seeing his though process not only in the words but also the drawings.
His was the kind of mind that is never really turned off. I understand that because Peter’s mind does the same thing as does mine. We live in the world of “what if” or “how can I do that”.
He was a creative genius who tapped into the zeitgeist giving us things we didn’t even know that we wanted and plenty that we did want. If I say “manamana” many of you are thinking “Do do-do do” automatically. We know the sketches and the characters. “Good Grief the Comedian is a Bear” or “Great a running gag”. We know Kermit trying to hold the show together with varied success. We know Fozzie will tell a very old joke and that Sam Eagle will be shocked by something that is going on. We know Oscar loves trash and Ernie loves his rubber ducky. We know about the Storyteller and an astronaut who ended up at the other end of the galaxy thrust into a world not of his making. He introduced us to the Goblin King and the works of Brian Froud. He created the world of the Dark Crystal.
He supported other artists both financially and with words of encouragement. The Jim Henson foundation gives grants to puppeteers to create new work. He believed in the power of the puppet to entertain and educate both children and adults.
And he believed in us. He believed in the best of us and encouraged us to be our best.
“I believe that we form our own lives, that we create our own reality, and that everything works out for the best. I know I drive some people crazy with what seems to be ridiculous optimism, but it has always worked out for me.”- Jim Henson
I am grateful I met Jim Henson.
His influence on my work can be seen in every puppet I make.
If not for his creative work, I do not think I would be creating mine.
Jim Henson encouraged people to be creative and to think outside the box for solutions to what one wanted to do. He didn’t start out being a puppeteer but became one when he had the opportunity to work in television. He found people whose creativity and abilities filled in gaps in his abilities. He knew how to assemble a team and make magic.
He was a doodler extraordinaire. His papers are covered in all kinds of pictures and geographic designs. He was doing zentangle before there was zentangle. I love looking at those pages and seeing his though process not only in the words but also the drawings.
His was the kind of mind that is never really turned off. I understand that because Peter’s mind does the same thing as does mine. We live in the world of “what if” or “how can I do that”.
He was a creative genius who tapped into the zeitgeist giving us things we didn’t even know that we wanted and plenty that we did want. If I say “manamana” many of you are thinking “Do do-do do” automatically. We know the sketches and the characters. “Good Grief the Comedian is a Bear” or “Great a running gag”. We know Kermit trying to hold the show together with varied success. We know Fozzie will tell a very old joke and that Sam Eagle will be shocked by something that is going on. We know Oscar loves trash and Ernie loves his rubber ducky. We know about the Storyteller and an astronaut who ended up at the other end of the galaxy thrust into a world not of his making. He introduced us to the Goblin King and the works of Brian Froud. He created the world of the Dark Crystal.
He supported other artists both financially and with words of encouragement. The Jim Henson foundation gives grants to puppeteers to create new work. He believed in the power of the puppet to entertain and educate both children and adults.
And he believed in us. He believed in the best of us and encouraged us to be our best.
“I believe that we form our own lives, that we create our own reality, and that everything works out for the best. I know I drive some people crazy with what seems to be ridiculous optimism, but it has always worked out for me.”- Jim Henson
I am grateful I met Jim Henson.
