BioWolf
Two hander puppet

BioWolf was created as a response to a group puppet project. The stimulus given was mammals. From this we shared discussions and ideas. Taking the current economical state of the country and indeed the world, we decided to comment on the lockdown. There were two avenues we wanted to link together. After being put into lockdown, we started to feel trapped/caged and isolated. We realised that this was a feeling that is all too common for many mammals. Animals are mistreated by humans every day. This includes: animal testing, genetic modifications, experimenting, captivity, breeding and interbreeding and destruction of habitats.
We collaborated our findings and decided to see what it would be like if these mammals were then left to their own devises.
Would they escape?
Would they go home to their natural habitat?
Could they function outside of captivity?
Will they thrive?
In our narrative, each mammal had a different outcome. This was presented as a 15 minute short film. This film is both a political statement and an outlet for ourselves after being in lockdown and becoming isolated from our peers, friends and family.
Biowolf had derived from research into the Russian experiment released in 1940. The experiment in the revival of organisms kept a decapitated dogs head alive for 4 hours whilst stimulus responses remained. This shocked me!
Following this research I considered what would come next?
They would try to build a mechanical body to function with the live head. This is where the BioWolf came from. The head of the wolf should be life like, full of personality while the body should be rusted metal that has a mechanical feel.
I also wanted a tatty kind of finish to the head, as if the wolf had not been well kept.
This wolf knows nothing of the outside and has lived its life in a lab. Regardless of this, on escaping, the instincts jump into play and the Wolf is able to make relationships. The wolf finds freedom whilst unsupervised by humans due to the lockdown taking them away from the work places. Even after all the wolf has been though, it has great spirit and a loveable personality.
BioWolf is a two hander puppet and puppeteered by one person. All limbs are movable. The tail has constant movement as the spine links directly to the tail and is made of sprung flexible wire, allowing a full range of movement.