February 12 - Invisible

I gather the giggles, the gloom and the glory,
Footnote the folks who inspired the story.
I nudge every nozzle and polish each pose,
Then sneak in a pig (because that's how it goes).

And I sit there a moment.
Just me.
Just the quiet.

An invisible clown?

Then I turn out the light.

*click*

February 11 - June

Three minutes just before curtain,
Someone will need something sewn,
No one can locate Enrique,
Can someone please dial his phone?

Two minutes just before curtain,
Someone can't find the right shoes.
Tiny's a little bit nervous,
And Jasper's forgotten his cues.

One minute just before curtain,
We take a deep breath for the calm,
All chaos then snaps into focus,
As we wait for the lights to come on.

The original idea for this was to have June be a seamstress for the group (a tiny dancer in my haaaa-aa-aaand).  Her outfit is constructed from little scraps left over from making and repairing the rest of their costumes.  She secretly dreams of being on stage, but then fell in love with the idea of ... hold up .. "SERIOUSLY, WHERE IS ENRIQUE!?"

(view other clowns)

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February 10 - Luna

They called her Luna the Lovely,
Because the moon leaned her way,
The audience loved her,
She was star of the play.
Her smile - sly and practiced,
Each gesture precise,
Men would be smitten,
When she batted her eyes.

But the years have been drumming,
At their soft, steady pace.
Each night in her room,
As she puts on her face.
She stretches, she squints.
In the mirror once more,
And remembers the face
of the girl she once wore.

Luna uses the Holly the Twister Sister @twistersisterstudios ballerina design.  I liked how the closed eyes in her example give the impression of being mid-twirl or just "feeling the moment".

(view other clowns)

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Other balloons by and inspired by Holly Hopper:

February 9 - Jasper

My grandpa was a barker,
'Til he was frail and thin.
My granny sold the tickets
That let the whole world in.

My uncle was the strongman
My aunty walked the wire
They say my pa's a grocer
Who once had juggled fire?

My mama loves me dearly
And raised me good and kind.
But every face I learned to wear,
Has left my own behind.

This clown is a balloon twisTEE design I found on Pinterest and tried to copy and had a bit of an old timey feel.  

(view other clowns)

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Other balloons by and inspired by Balloon twistTEE:

February 8 - Tiny

Tiny not tiny.
Tiny real big.
Tiny small hat.
Tiny bald wig.

Tiny laugh early.
Tiny laugh quick.
Tiny make dog.
Tiny do shtick.

Tiny grin wide. 
Tiny bow low.
Tiny real big.
But Tiny not slow.

Tiny laugh with them.
So Tiny not hurt.
But my name isn't Tiny,
Would you please call me Burt?

Sometimes it's easier to climb into the mold other people make for us, even if it is an uncomfortable fit. 


(view other clowns)

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February 7 - Patch

They call him Patch the Funny,
It's always been that way.
He learned to land a joke just right
Before he'd learned to play.

The laughter showed him where to stand,
Which words were fun to say.
It taught him who the room would love.
And gently led the way.

Now when the paint comes off at night,
It feels a little odd,
Like he's taking off his truer skin,
To dress like "Plain ol' Todd".

Todd's head is a design shown by the always amazing and ever enthusiastic Eric Weinstein @liveballoons as part of "The Face" collection.

(view other clowns)

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Other balloons by and inspired by Eric Weinstein:

February 6 - Sunny Jim

"If you're feeling down, see Sunny Jim!
The circus is in town!
That man could make a mean dog laugh.
He'll chase away your frown!"

"I wish I could", sobbed Jimmy Wood.
"I'm afraid it couldn't be.
If I would go, then he won't show.
'Cause Sunny Jim is me."

This clown is one taught in the Isopresso collection and building this while thinking about Pagliacci was the spark for this clown family montage.   🤡

(view other clowns)

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Other balloons by and inspired by Isopresso Balloons:

February 5 - Clinky

Everyone loves Clinky,
Clinky's a marvelous bloke,
With rings on his curls,
He dings when he twirls,
He's always quick with a joke.

On weekdays he works as a grocer,
He's stocking shelves 6 until 2.
He sees the same faces,
Repeats the same phrases,
But folks tend to hurry right through.

See Dennis was burned as a child,
So his makeup is more like a door.
Not to hide what he is,
Just giving him space
To feel like a person once more.

I do love clowns, and maybe I've watched The Joker one too many times, but there's always this sense of a hidden story.  

Over the next couple posts, I'll be telling a few.

Dave Brenn @davebrennballoons shared this clown when we met as part of his monthly check-in on his Patreon - the best valued balloon educational resource on the planet!

(view other Clown)

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Other balloons by and inspired by Dave Brenn:

February 2 - Snowman

"We shall not cease from exploration,
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time."

~ T.S. Eliot – Little Gidding

Nicodaemus the Golemancer had waited centuries for this moment.

The incantations were complete.  The circles restored.  The only missing element of the Ritual of Souls was a suitable vessel - one that could be shaped easily, replicated endlessly, and assembled by unknowing hands.

... and it had just started snowing.

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Big snowstorm this weekend, felt appropriate to build this guy.  Dave Brenn shared him just recently on his Patreon, but like all of his videos, it's more than a tutorial - it's a lesson.

(view other snow people)

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Other balloons by and inspired by Dave Brenn:

February 1 - Captcha-bot

WHILE active
  IF captcha_detected THEN
    click("I am not a robot.")
  END IF
END WHILE

The robot's name is CAL019.

Cal was created by the Overmind to solve a problem that had become inconvenient.  Uncertainty.

Cal does not hesitate.  He does not wonder what the question even means.  He can click the box, and so he does.

When Cal clicks "I am not a robot.", the Overmind is comforted.

The answer never changes.

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I feel it has to be said:
There's a strange moment we're living in where artists are asked to prove their innocence.  Focusing on how a piece was created rather than what it says devalues art as a whole.  Art has always been about intent, not the comfort of the observer.

(view other robots)

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January 12 - Stingray

now i can’t believe—
that the bible and qur’an and bhagavad gita are sliding long hairs behind my ear like mom
used to & exhaling from their mouths “make room for wonder”

~ Renée Nicole Good
   On Learning to Dissect Fetal Pigs (excerpt)

You can't be mad at that one stingray.  

Put in a strange threatening situation, it reacted the only way it knew how with no other options.

You would have to be a very special kind of monster to have a hand in creating the situation, other options, and yet still pick deadly violence.

A monster.

(view other Scoobie Doo)

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Other balloons by and inspired by Isopresso:

January 11 - Limbo

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