*Izannah Little Red*

There are many, many, interpretations of this little fairy tale~~what do the woods symbolize? The wolf? Why is the little girl wearing red? A quick bit of research will reveal all you ever wanted to know~~and more~~about

°º©©º°¨¨¨¨¨¨°º©©º°¨¨¨¨°º©©º°
Little Red Riding Hood...

°º©©º°¨¨¨¨¨¨°º©©º°¨¨¨¨°º©©º°

To be honest, I usually enjoy "the annotated version". But not so with this classic tale. I prefer, in this instance, to take away my own impressions...my own thoughts.

The woods can be unsettling when you're all alone...terrifying when you're not alone. Critics and literary scholars return again and again to the childhood fear of "being devoured"~~a much more realistic fear in early 1800s Germany where Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm published a series of stories collected from peasants and villagers...Grimm's Fairy Tales. All of these tales have a "moral", or lesson, to teach their audience (children). It was a very good thing to be afraid of wolves if you were a child who lived in the scantly populated countryside and often~~or seldom~~ walked alone in the forest!
Little Red Riding Hood remains universally popular, even being used for political propaganda upon occasion, throughout history. While the psychological elements and symbolism within the story can be a bit overwhelming, the tale has certainly been utilized for many different purposes~~probably because of all of the "layers" and psychological suppositions...
So what is my personal connection?

¨¨¨°º©©º°¨¨¨¨¨¨°º©©º°¨¨¨¨°º©©º°¨¨¨¨¨°º©©º°¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨°º©©º°¨¨¨¨

A memory...of walking alone, in the woods. Leaves that crunch and twigs that snap...being so deep into the thick oak trees that a sunny afternoon seems just a few moments before nightfall, the light is so dim and hazy. Knowing that you ought to be completely alone~~aside from harmless deer and perhaps a stray songbird...knowing that you should be, by all reason, alone. But that you are not. And then imagining, planning, rehearsing...
what you will say to the wolf.
©2009 Megan Wommack

¨¨¨°º©©º°¨¨¨¨¨¨°º©©º°¨¨¨¨°º©©º°¨¨¨¨¨°º©©º°¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨°º©©º°¨¨¨¨

This latest paper poppet is available in my etsy shoppe,

or on eBay~~

Fairy Tales....Hansel & Gretel

*Mother?*

Really, at the center of this queer little tale is hunger...and so, there is an oven--a witch's oven--precisely where this doll's stomach would be...there is day (a sun) & lonely night (a crescent moon), both helplessly watching a family's journey...

The four travel from their cottage into the woods...the children go further on, of course, after their father and stepmother have abandoned them--further on into the witch's candy house with feather beds and plenty of sweet food. At least, for the moment. But when your stomach is empty--truly empty--the moment is all that matters....

Maddening white birds flutter throughout this tale...and why white? For they only lead the children further astray--they are the witch's birds, and should really be crows or something like. Tiny white dots embellish the entire scene--they even illustrate the tattered lace on the witch-mother's dress...they are snow and cold...bread crumbs...light and flowers...and the lace...things seem different that are really quite the same, depending on which part of the forest you are in.




In this old, old, fairy tale...the children do escape (but you knew that). When they return home to their father, the stepmother is "dead"...do you think, gentle reader, as I do, that the stepmother died precisely when Gretel pushed the witch into the oven?

Megan Wommack©2008-2009

Each paper doll is laser copied onto acid-free card stock from my original *Paper Poppet Prints*, adhered to substantial paper, cut out & jointed with tiny brads.

*Mother?* is styled after a c.1600s wooden doll~~This doll has the unique feature of a "spinning head"~~she may change from witch to stepmother....did you ever make your witch, er, stepmother's head spin?????

By the by, I do love my stepmother, very much...she is NOT a witch! :)
measurements are as follows:
witch w/ boots folded up: 10" (includes hat)
witch w/ boots folded down: 12" (includes hat)
skirt is 8+ inches across at widest point

stepmother: 8.5" high (no boots)

this piece is available from my etsy shoppe, or eBay~~as you see, you may display her on an easel frame, though there is a double-loop of thread should you wish to display as a wall piece. Or, I suppose you could "frame" her...she does all sorts of things--don't you love dollies you can play with?! Her head spins 'round and is designed precisely so...the witch's hat is completely hidden when she is the stepmother. The witch's boots fold up as well, which can be a display option (or it makes the figure of the stepmother a bit more "different" than the witch...)

A happy accident with this piece: this doll's "form" is styled after the famed "Letitia Penn" wooden doll (whose year of creation and travel to America is somewhat debatable...). But, she is indeed a 1600-1700s dollie, which times out exactly with the Salem Witch Trials.

And another note~~these paper poppets of late are mixed media & then some...gouache, pen, ink, colored pencil, watercolor pencil, opaque pen...I am appalled at how much a set of watercolors costs these days, and so, have been foraging ahead without...and making many fun discoveries with the mediums I have on hand! (Although, I must procure some tubes of gamboge and payne's grey~~my favorite watercolor hues...)

Happy New Year blessings,

meg