Hoppity Horse Mask

This mask was produced as one of thirty masks I made for a gallery show. The interesting thing about that experience is, once the masks began to accumulate, the impetus for creation became less pure. Lots of those masks were inspired by the usual sources: passing fancies, dreams, bad jokes, and food. But as I went on, I had to start considering them as a collection, so that I could present the most interesting show. It was important that I present masks in various styles, different sizes, and a balance of colors.

Two things happened here. First, I was very interested in making a full-head mask that would rest on the wearer's crown. I'd already made a couple of big ones that sit on your shoulders, but none that you could wear like a helmet.

Second, my show needed to have a horse in it.

I'm not terribly interested in horses, but they're a big part of our community and I wanted to include one in a way that would be entertaining for me.

So I decided on an even more extreme departure from my usual methods. When I was a little kid, I had a yellow rubber Hoppity Hop and I loved it! Instead of doing some kind of personal 'spin' on it, I would try to recreate the original Hoppity Hop head as closely as I could.

Maybe this mask had a less inspired beginning than some of my other projects, being created to fill a presentational gap in my collection, but the project itself was engaging and fun. I don't usually try to remake things that exist in the real world, but it's almost always a bigger challenge than expected!

Made from corrugated cardboard, duct tape, paper mache (newspaper, flour and water), and paper clay.

I started by bending some corrugated cardboard over a mannequin head, and found the basic shape by folding and taping it directly to the base. The mask needed to be balanced, so it could be worn on the head without tipping forward or back, but at this stage there was some guesswork involved. I knew that building and shaping the nostrils/eyeholes was going to change the weight, and so would adding the mane down the back of the head!

For now I balanced the sub-structure, and hoped that I could build it more-or-less evenly from there. I covered the cardboard with a full skin of paper mache strips and got to work.

Paper mache clay was the most important tool for creating the designs from the Hoppity Hop. The clay can be rolled out like dough, and cut with a blade or a cookie cutter, resulting in even and regular pieces. I usually roll out the clay on a silicone baking mat, because it doesn't stick and is easy to clean. Before I cut, I transfer the rolled clay to a cutting mat, or my glass work table.

Cutting out the nostrils takes off a half an ounce or so, but reshaping them with clay – and adding the mouth – puts on a lot more than that. With luck, it would be roughly the same amount as the mane!

The eyes of the horse, and the bases of the handles, are exactly the same size, so I traced those circles onto the base. To make the eyes, I built up a very low ridge of clay around the outside of the circle, and blended it into the surrounding area.

All the little details for the reins were cut from rolled clay, and then attached to the base with flour paste. A strip of manila folder, used like a cookie cutter, reproduced the arch motif that decorates the inside of the rein, and the outer edges were cut using a ruler and craft knife.

I sclupted the tufts of hair for the mane directly onto the base, and used a clay tool to gouge out the patterns. That's a tool set that I happen to have on hand, but you could easily do it with a spoon or even a fingernail. Use what you have!

Each handle was a hunk of corrugated cardboard, rolled and taped into a strong and solid cylinder. The cylinders were attached to the main structure with paper mache strips. That holds them in place with a sturdy enough grip to build up the raised, circular base of the handle using paper clay, which makes for a very secure handle. And of course, I used more clay to make the rounded ends,

Once the handles were in place, it was easy enough to pull all the decorations together and make it look like the real thing. I cleaned up the seams on all the separate pieces that make up the reins, and finished them with two stars that I cut out of clay, using a paper stencil and a craft knife.

The last step before painting was to go over the whole surface and fill in any gaps or irregularities with smoothing clay, and then add the seam all the way around.

Finishing this mask was fairly simple, since it's just a two-color paint job, but it takes a bit of care because I only work with traditional brushes. The somewhat grungy look of a real Hoppity Hop is the result of the paint being sloppily applied with an airbrush or other spray mechanism, and I needed to replicate that appearance with different tools. It requires a deft hand with a dry brush, and wiping excess paint away with a cloth, until at last you achieve the proper balance.

If you're lucky enough to have an airbrush, or brave enough to take a can of actual spraypaint to your mask, that might give you a better result. I guess I stuck to my comfort zone, which is nothing to brag about, but I do think it looks all right!

Once the main colors were dry, the final bit of flair was to dirty it up a little. A real Hoppity Hop gets used outside, in the dirt and rain, and left there. It gets constantly touched by unwashed little hands. I mashed black paint into the grooves, and under the mouth, and around the ears, then wiped it all away before it could dry. And then I did it some more. You get traces of paint building up like grime in the nooks and crannies, which makes it look a lot more like the real thing!

I used a Mod Podge varnish over the top because it's thicker and has a more artificial quality. Since I was faking an object made of rubber, that seemed like the best choice.

The obvious next course of action was to dress up as a Hoppity Hop and try myself out! I realize there is a certain unreality to this scenario, as I have never seen a Hoppity Hop grabbing its own handles, but I took the liberty.

In spite of its origins, this was a satisfying build and I think everybody will recognize the Hoppity Hop for what it is. Besides merely filling out the ranks of masks in the gallery show, the Hoppity Hop mask was also used as a raffle prize for folks who visited the exhibit! Some mysterious stranger will be the (hopefully proud?) new owner of a paper mask pretending to be a rubber horse.

I hope I see them out on the street some Halloween, when I can nod knowingly, and they will not know why because I too am a mysterious stranger, and also wearing a mask.