The Yellow House, was one of Australia's most colourful contributions to the hippy / psychedelic era of the late 1960s and early 1970s. It opened to the public on April's Fools Day 1970.

The Powerhouse Museum holds a reconstructed Yellow House puppet theatre, along with an original puppet storage chest, photographs, artworks and other material relating to the puppet theatre created for the Yellow House between 1969-1970. Together, these puppets and artworks were used and seen on a daily basis in the Yellow House Puppet Theatre, Stone Room and other areas of this artist residence, gallery and live performance space during it's heyday from 1970 through to 1971. The Magritte-inspired surrealist ceramics were used as props while the artworks hung on the outer walls of the Theatre.

The puppet plays were written and/or presented by George Gittoes. They include both ancient works based on classical Greek and Persian mythology and contemporary plays (eg Eugène Ionesco), and a suite of puppet plays on the story of the wives of great artists eg Mondrian's [wife], Picasso's wife Olga Khokhlova with son Paolo, and Albert Tucker's wife Joy Hester, who like Gittoes' girlfriend had tragically committed suicide.

Importantly, the puppet plays reflect Gittoes emerging interest in tragedy and conflict and his deep rooted interest in Greek and Persian mythology. Today George Gittoes is a leading and international award winning Australian documentary filmmaker.

Anne-Marie Van de Ven, Curator 2008

Made by George Gittoes, Sydney, New South Wales.

Gittoes' polystyrene carving technique developed out of his work in the surfing industry.
Gittoes has described how he came to develop his distinctive polystyrene foam puppets in an interview with curator Anne-Marie Van de Ven on the 15th of September 2009:

Gittoes' was a keen surfer in the 1960s. He and his friends used balsa surf boards, which were heavy and cumbersome, and he says they coveted the more light weight foam boards. He couldn't buy the foam surf boards, so he bought the chemicals to make his own. He says that the moulds were badly made and he would see the foam ooze out from the moulds and this inspired him to play with the material in a creative way.

He made a cylinder out of cardboard and formed a 'fairy floss' shape out of the ooze. He became skilled at working with the foam and bought a glass blower, which enabled him to flow in the way he wanted. He would shape the head and the hair of the puppet and would then carve eyes and a mouth from the dried foam.

This puppet was given to Gittoes' niece Selena in 1975, for her 4th birthday, and hung for many years in her bedroom. It resembles and related to Gittoes' sculpture 'Female'.

Gittoes created the puppet theatre in 1969 and performed shows in the Yellow House in 1969, 1970, 1971 and at the beginning of 1972. He remembers its peak as being during 1971. At one point Gittoes was performing three shows a day. He would repeat certain, classic, plays.

Gittoes had been performing Greek mythology puppet shows before the Yellow House was founded. He was fascinated by Greek mythology at school - the Perseus myth holds a real importance for him. He read Islamic poetry at school, and studied Islamic art. He was influenced by the poets ar-Rumi and Attach and his plays reflect his delight in the Sufi teaching traditions, including their use of puppetry.

Puppet, Angel, from Gittoes Yellow House Puppet Theatre collection, polystyrene / oil paints, designed and made by George Gittoes, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, 1970-1971.

This puppet is constructed of polystyrene foam and painted with oils. It is in a fair condition, with cracking in the painted surface of the body and wings.

It was designed and made by George Gittoes, created for and used in the puppet theatre of the Yellow House.

Artist: Gittoes, George; Sydney, New South Wales; 1969 - 1972

2009/68/1-11

1969 - 1972

280 mm

690 mm

810 mm