Embarking on the Road to Furry Fandom
So... at family gatherings and such, confused friends and family often ask me: why do you make masks? I don't really have a better answer than "because I like to", though if they want to take the time to read it, I refer them to my more serious answer here. Now that I've recently started making furry masks (and soon, other costume pieces to go with them), I'm heading them off at the pass and answering *that* question here.
While I have been interested in costuming and making masks my whole life, I decided to make a serious go of it and started Sans Souci Studios in 2000. I made masks in paper mache because that was the material about which I could most readily find information on the Internet and I made animal masks because that was what I liked doing. I had a fair bit of success, with my work appearing in video, theatre and TV and being purchased by collectors around the world. Below, some of my favorites:
While I have been interested in costuming and making masks my whole life, I decided to make a serious go of it and started Sans Souci Studios in 2000. I made masks in paper mache because that was the material about which I could most readily find information on the Internet and I made animal masks because that was what I liked doing. I had a fair bit of success, with my work appearing in video, theatre and TV and being purchased by collectors around the world. Below, some of my favorites:
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Paper mache cat masks by Sans Souci Studios at the 2009 Design Festa in Tokyo, Japan.
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"Rival", a paper mache unicorn mask in the video birthday card "Uniporn", produced by Lightborne Studios in Cinncinnati, Ohio in 2011.
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"Sylvan", a paper mache deer mask by Sans Souci Studios, an earlier version of which was featured on the 2010 fall/winter catalog of "Elkha", a boutique men's and women's clothing label based in Melbourne, Australia.
"Sylvan", a paper mache deer mask by Sans Souci Studios, an earlier version of which was featured on the 2010 fall/winter catalog of "Elkha", a boutique men's and women's clothing label based in Melbourne, Australia.
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"Sneer", a paper mache wolf mask by Sans Souci Studios, dancing the tango with Eduardo Rodriguez of Cirque Du Soleil fame, at the 2009 Puja Gods and Monsters dance concert in Kaneohe, Hawaii.
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My White Rabbit mask in the CSI episode "Malice in Wonderland", aired March 2012. My five minutes of fame.
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A few years ago, a critical ingredient in my paper mache method was discontinued (Poly Filla by LePage, I used it for the smooth top layer of my masks) and I could not find anything else with which to replace it. Also, my work appeared to be inhabiting some odd little niche in the mask world. It was difficult to predict who would buy my work and what they would use it for, so it was difficult to market my work to a specific audience or for a specific purpose. These two things combined helped me decide it was time to reevaluate the direction of my work. I decided to do some online research and friend all the maskmakers I could on Facebook, to learn more about how they marketed their own masks. Right and below, some of the wonderful artists I friended (pictures used with permission.)
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Stanley Allen Sherman, NYC. Paper mache, commedia dell' arte. www.maskarts.com
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Melita Curphy, resin masks and art dolls, Chicago, Ill. www.missmonster.com
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Larry Wood, leather masks for Renaissance Faires. Crownsvile, MD. www.fantasyguilde.com
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Eric Bornstein, paper mache masks, Somerville, MA. www.behindthemask.org
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Alyssa Ravenwood, leather superhero cosplay masks, Arcata, CA www.ravenwoodmasks.mysupadupa.com
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Matthieu Rene, paper mache puppets and masks. Montreal, Canada. . http://creaturiste.wixsite.com/creaturiste
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Following other maskmakers on Facebook, I learned that paper mache, the material in which I had invested so much time learning to use, is most often used for theatre masks, due to its strength, light weight, and traditional appearance. I realized if I wanted to target my masks more specifically to theatre, I would have to be willing to make whatever the customer wanted under tight deadlines. At this point also had to confront the fact that I had no desire whatsoever to make anything but animal masks.
Doing more research, I learned that many people who specifically purchased animal masks took a very dim view of paper mache, preferring instead resin, foam, and faux fur. Below, some of the wonderful masks I first came across while doing this research, which just about made me despair of my own skills, hang up my tools and call it quits.
Doing more research, I learned that many people who specifically purchased animal masks took a very dim view of paper mache, preferring instead resin, foam, and faux fur. Below, some of the wonderful masks I first came across while doing this research, which just about made me despair of my own skills, hang up my tools and call it quits.
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Masks by Beetlecat www.beetlecatoriginals.com
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Masks by Clockwork Creature www.clockworkcreature.com
Of course I had to try to make one. But, but, a part of my brain was stuttering... but.. but... these are OMG! FURRIES!! Of course, as a roleplayer, a fan of science fiction and fantasy and an avid anime geek, I was very much aware of THIS:
Which, of course, is part of the famous Geek Hierarchy by Lore Sjoberg of the now defunct humor site Brunching Shuttlecocks. You'll notice the spot furries inhabit.
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But then, I needed to confront the reality of THIS. I designed this spiffy new logo when I started Sans Souci Studios in 2000, basing it on an animal I frequently dreamed about, a mashup of a wolf, a horse, and a bird of prey. Chasing its tail, it was meant to represent the playfulness I hoped to incorporate into my work. However I never quite felt comfortable using it, as it felt rather personal and private and a little too informal for some of my market. In other words, it felt a little, well, weird. Then, when I belatedly stumbled onto the furry fandom in 2014 I found that it actually had a lot of company out there and was in fact called a "sparkle dog". I decided to take this as a sign.
Now to take a big step back, and make a confession. I'm a huge model horse collector (you can see pics of my collection here and here), and when I started Sans Souci Studios, I imagined a mask world parallel to the model horse world, one with a tightly knit community that communicates often through various online forums, gets together regularly for shows and conventions, and above all loves to make, buy and sell whatever the desired object might be. Word of a good craftsperson with work available for purchase travels fast in such a community, and I imagined making and selling runs of masks the way a model horse artist would sell a limited edition run of a 1:9 scale ceramic or resin Arabian stallion. |
This of course was naive. Masks are not as simple as model horses, as wonderful as model horses are. On one hand there is the object that everyone would agree was a "mask", but on the other hand there are an incredibly broad and diverse group of objects that share this title and just about nothing else, each with their own uses, markets, and makers. The cultural antiques or fabulous art objects meant to be hung on a wall and admired. Jewel-colored feathered masks or carved leather masks worn to balls or masquerades, costume accessories much like purses or fine pieces of jewelry. For Halloween, vacuum formed plastic masks, meant to be worn only once or twice, or the fantastically detailed and gory latex monster masks made for horror movie buffs, which move easily from the collector's shelf to a Halloween party and back again. And then the entire range of masks meant to be used in theatre and dance, a whole subcategory into and of themselves, from the traditional commedia and Noh masks to the resin masks rappers sometimes wear. Then there are role-playing and cosplay masks, from the simple, super light leather LARPing mask to the elaborate Furry mask, the subject of this post, often with moving jaw and light up eyes. And just to make things more complex, these categories are not rigid, and there is no reason why the objects described in them can't slide sometimes from one category to the other. So I do have to give myself a break for not fully grasping all this at the outset.
The question is, now that I had finished my independent online study of masks and mask markets, in which direction did I want to go? The fact I want to make nothing but animal masks rules out quite a lot. Then there's the consideration that I don't really like to work to other's specifications under tight deadlines, which rules out taking commissions for theatres and video and such. And then, perhaps, the biggest consideration, there appears to be a community parallel to my beloved model horse community, similar to to the one I had imagined after all. Though at my age it's a little intimidating to set forth to a new fandom, I have many masks to make, a lot of fun to have and years of experience in another fandom to guide me. So off I go!
The question is, now that I had finished my independent online study of masks and mask markets, in which direction did I want to go? The fact I want to make nothing but animal masks rules out quite a lot. Then there's the consideration that I don't really like to work to other's specifications under tight deadlines, which rules out taking commissions for theatres and video and such. And then, perhaps, the biggest consideration, there appears to be a community parallel to my beloved model horse community, similar to to the one I had imagined after all. Though at my age it's a little intimidating to set forth to a new fandom, I have many masks to make, a lot of fun to have and years of experience in another fandom to guide me. So off I go!