​

This original foam latex Michael Buerk Spitting Image puppet came to me to be restored after showing signs of deterioration. 

 

The head was suffering from a lack of support which had resulted in the puppet collapsing in on itself. This had put pressure on weak spots and caused many problems. The main areas of concern were the chin, nose and eyes which had areas of very crumbly foam which were cracking. I rebuilt these areas with specialist materials and reinforced the weak spots from the inside.

 

The most important part of the job was building a custom made fibreglass stand to support the puppet securely in place and prevent drooping. 

 

The split line at the back would have been used for access to the mechanisms and entry to puppet. The foam here was rotten and very fragile so I disposed of this foam, restored the area and reinforced the weak areas to prevent further damage and hold the puppet shape.

 

There were several areas with cracking, which left unattended would lead to further deterioration. I carefully sealed and repainted these areas to protect against larger cracks developing in the future.

 

I always restore these beautiful original puppets whilst maintaining the original features and paint work.