Clara: The Final Word for Now

I posted a while ago about my friend Lenny Carter. She makes the most amazing puppets (among other things!) She just graduated with a 1st from London College of Communication. I went to see her degree show the other day and saw the final incarnation of Clara.

Clara is a misunderstood young girl, who feels as though she’s being manipulated by the people around her. In response, she creates her own world to which she can escape reality.

Clara is the star of her own stop-motion movie. The first part of which can be viewed here, at Clara’s Animated World.

Watch this space. Lenny has lots more projects in the works!

A Girl, Monsters, and Psychology: Work by Lenny Carter

One of my really good friends, Lenny, is doing a degree in Digital Media and in her interpretation of the assignments, she intelligently combines ‘analogue’ media with the digital. She combines arts and crafts and wool and resin into fully formed beings (human or otherwise) that express strong emotions and strong insights into the human condition.

The combination of a huge personality into a small puppet and ameoba-like shapes give her works their own style. The puppets invite the viewer to make up a story about them or, indeed, already tell their own and are waiting for someone to solidify it.

The stories can be implied, or in the case of Clara, very well-formed and psychological. Lenny uses the art of stop-motion to tell Clara’s story. Clara is a bit of a loner, teased by everyone around her and wrought with insecurities. Because of this, she makes her own world from which to escape.

Despite the obvious fantastical element, Lenny’s monsters and characters invite us to think about our own monsters and invite us to think about the sometimes very surreal world in which we all, humans, monsters and puppets, inhabit.

All images and photography done by Lenny Carter.