The Dwiggins Marionettes

de Dorothy Abbe

"William Addison Dwiggins: type designer, calligrapher, typographer, illustrator, and writer - his name is among the foremost contributors to the printing arts. But, save for an occasional engraving, none of these professional activities gave him the opportunity to work with wood, a medium he had loved from early boyhood. And so it was that an experimental marionette theatre provided an outlet not only for his talent for wood carving, but for other lines of creative activity as well. His theatre was 'experimental' in the sense that his interest lay not particularly in marionettes, but in the mechanical and artistic problems involved in making them. Dwiggins' Experimental Theatre was strictly avocational, engaging his attention for perhaps a dozen years -- a highly productive period during which he was occupied with some of his most important professional work. Despite this fact, he brought to the new undertaking his customary perfection of execution which made an art of his unique conception of marionettes." -- Foreword.