Prototyping Puppets Beyond Borders

Michael Nitsche, Isabel Restrepo and Crystal Eng / USA, Colombia

Georgia Institute of Technology, Universidad de Antioquia

Paper

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We report on an ongoing collaboration that uses puppetry as a shared cultural expression in STEAM workshop designs that inform intercultural exchange. Collaborators in Atlanta, USA and Medellín, Colombia work in tandem on the design and implementation of a puppet-building workshops. These workshops use narrative framing, craft-based prototyping, and performancebased validation to teach students basic prototyping skills. They specifically encourage them to relate to their local culture and to inform an ongoing dialogue between the two cultural spheres.