ROCKLAND — Beginning on Oct. 12, in conjunction with the museum’s Annual Fall Family Festival, the Farnsworth Art Museum will host a week long mask and puppet-making workshop. Taught by Nance Parker, Artistic Director of the Shoestring Theater in Portland, the workshop will take place Monday, Oct 12 through Saturday, Oct 17.

Monday’s session is from 12 to 4 p.m., the Tuesday through Friday sessions are from 2 to 6 p.m. and Saturday’s is from 12 to3 p.m. The workshop, which is free of charge, will take place at the museum’s Gamble Education Center on the corner of Grace and Union Streets in Rockland.

All ages are invited to learn the process of creating, designing and building a personal mask. Participants will be expected to use their wildest ideas about creatures and myths when designing their work. Puppets will be executed sculpting clay, paper-mâché, and wire, in addition to adding hand- sewn costumes to create creatures both magical and scary. There will also be an ongoing, group project of building a large parading puppet. These will be part of the Fall Family Festival Parade, which will depart from the Farnsworth’s Gamble Education Center at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 17. 

While the mask and puppet-making studio times are flexible, participants should be willing to commit to multiple visits in order to complete a personal mask and allowing drying-time in between sessions. Participants should be old enough to work independently, or have adult supervision. The workshop is also open to adults without accompanying children.

This workshop is free of charge. Though drop-ins are welcome, advance reservations are greatly appreciated, by emailing the Farnsworth’s Education Department at kfinlay@farnsworthmuseum.org