(SWEDISH BELOW)

In December 2022, I met with Arne Högsander, who is one the most famous contemporary dollmakers in Sweden. Arne is renowned for his contributions to the world of puppetry, dollmaking, as well as mask making. His artistic style is distinct, and it is easy to recognise his otherworldly faces and creations that unite expressive qualities and a craftmanship that is awe-inspiring. Arne specialises in papier-mâché and has a unique technique that he has cultivated over the span of his artistic career.

I met up with Arne at Sven Harry’s Museum in Stockholm, where he was stationed at his dollmaking-space at the exhibition “Kraftverk”, roughly translated as “Craft work”, where different types of craftsmanship were displayed and celebrated. I visited the exhibition together with my supervisor in dollmaking, Tina Tombrock, who previously had worked with Arne in the 80s and 90s. Meeting Arne was a magical experience, as his experience and skill radiates both from him and his work.

From the right: Dolores Fors, Arne Högsander, Tina Tombrock
At Sven Harry’s Museum (2022)

During our meeting I asked Arne if he had any ongoing courses in dollmaking, as I was very interested in learning from his techniques and perspectives. He did not offer any courses, partly due to a lack of a large enough studio. Me and Tina suggested that he could come to Tina’s studio, that is both ample in size, and designed for workshops and courses, especially in sculpting, pottery, and dollmaking. A seed was sown, and after some correspondence over email, phone, and our next meeting at Unima Sweden’s annual meeting in Stockholm, a workshop slated for autumn had crystalised.

The official poster for the workshop, designed by Dolores Fors
Photo by Eva Högsander

Now the workshop “Marionettes and masks – And introduction with Arne Högsander” is set for the 1-3 of September this year. The workshop will be theoretical and practical, with some background on the marionette and Arne during an initial lecture-style presentation, followed by two days of sculpting and transferring the sculptures to a papier-mâché medium. I am looking forward to it! Unfortunately, the course will be held in Swedish, otherwise we would have gladly advertised it for an international audience. The link to register for the course can, nonetheless, be found in the link in the Swedish section of this text.

SVENSKA
Workshop – Marionetter & masker en introduktion med Arne Högsander

Den 1–3 September håller Arne Högsander en tredagars workshop om marionettdockor och masker på Backa konstkvarn i Grillby. Arne Högsander är en av Sveriges största dockmakare och är känd för sina masker och dockor.

Under denna workshop ingår två moment:
teoretisk lära marionettdockan och dess uppbyggnad

        samt

praktiskt prova på vissa moment inom skulptering, papier-mâché, för både marionetter och masker.

För mer information och för att boka en plats på kursen, klicka HÄR för att komma till bokningssidan, eller mejla backakonst@gmail.com.