About this project
The Tale of the Crippled Boy
"Part puppeteer, preacher, philosopher and poet, Frame is a jack of all trades with a singular vision ... " -Los Angeles Times
The Tale of the Crippled Boy is an ongoing project whose end goal is a feature-length film collection of animated vignettes. Over the last five years, with help from only a few family members and close friends, I have made, animated, photographed, and scored all of the elements of the project, treating each as a work of art in its own right. We completed Part I, "Three Fragments of a Lost Tale", in 2011 and exhibited it at the Huntington Library Art Collections and Botanical Gardens from March to June of that year. The project was extremely well received, drawing more than thirty thousand visitors, quickly selling out the first edition of the catalog and generating thoughtful response from the press (which can be seen on my website). That success has not, however, translated into financial support for the project. Since we need all of the characters to stay together in order to animate and are making the final films available for free, we are still very much in need of your support.
Play the entire twelve and a half minutes of completed film above.
See the 8-minute background film, "Happy Medium" here.
BACKGROUND
The Tale arrived in my consciousness as a complete narrative with a clear beginning, middle and end. As the characters came into being, however, they seemed to have wills of their own. In response, the films have evolved into non-linear and non-narrative vignettes, in which the characters lead us rather than the other way around. I hope you will agree that they do, strangely, still seem to carry a story along with them at some deeper level, one that is outside the boundaries of language. For me they have become a sort of Visual Poetry.
O-Man / The Unanswered Question: Archival Pigment Print
CURRENT WORK
We are now beginning work on Part II of the Tale. Whelmings (the working title)introduces several new sets and characters into the mix and will have a very heavy focus on carrying the animation forward to at least half of the intended feature length. We expect it will take us more than a year to complete. (The written form of The Tale, The Beehive and the Windmill, is also in the works and we hope to be able to publish it in the not-too-distant future, but that is another story.) For now, it is our intention to continue the work as it has begun. We are a small, fiercely independent crew committed to bringing something genuinely new into the world. This is not about producing a commercial release film. We feel strongly that the project has been given to us as a gift and that our job is to honor it at every step along the way, ultimately making the completed films available free to everyone who would like to view them online.
Three Fragments DVD cover. Limited Edition signed by the filmmakers.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
We are very open to hearing your thoughts on the project, including any suggestions you might have about the incentives. It is our goal to provide contributors with meaningful and unusual ways to take part. While the amount of money we will actually need to complete the entire project will be large (my best guess is that the final feature length film version will require about ten times what we are currently trying to raise), ANY amount will be of significant help in carrying us forward. In the simplest terms, we need money to buy the time and equipment required to execute this incredibly labor-intensive form of art. In addition, our work would advance much more quickly if we were able to pay at least one more person to help us. If you like what we are doing, please consider linking us to others through your social networking sites. Your help will be sincerely appreciated!
Detail of the Multiple for our top incentive. "Do You Know What Time It Is?" 2011, Patinated Bronze and Found Objects. Area shown is about 7" x 7". Edition of 12, each individually composed using the Bronze Head shown with a variety of found objects. Most will utilize the motif of time.
AND FINALLY ...
We hope you will be as intrigued by this world as we have been, and that you will become a part of the project and help us to continue the telling of the tale.
Many Thanks,
John Frame
Mr R Shares a Secret
For additional information, please visit our Website: www.JohnFrameSculpture.com
"Fine Art is that in which the Head, the Heart and the Hand go together."
John Ruskin
Example of one of the Skeleton Dance Drawings as used for business purposes
Example of gift label designed for our annual batch of crab apple liquor.
FAQs
What about shipping?
Incentives will be shipped to supporters in the Continental United States without additional charge.
What if I don't like the incentives?
We are open to feedback from our supporters (or potential supporters) and to the possibility of changing the incentive structure. Please send us an email using the link at right.
Do your drawings or photographs come framed?
No, they ship unframed in rigid envelopes.
How does transportation for the studio visit work?
We are located in Wrightwood, California. You are responsible for your own transportation to and from our house/studio.
It looks like you are offering more than 500 of the limited edition DVDs. What's up?
Yes. If and when the 500 copies run out, this will be clearly noted in all incentives that currently involve the DVD.
May I opt out of being credited on the film or donate money and decline the awards?
Yes, all film credit and awards may be declined if you simply want to assist us in our work.
Are any of your other works of art for sale?
Yes, please visit this page of the website: http://johnframesculpture.com/available-work
FAQ
Have a question? If the info above doesn't help, you can ask the project creator directly.
82
Backers
$21,580
pledged of $17,000 goal
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Funding Successful
This project successfully raised its funding goal on December 24.
Pledge $10 or more Pledge $10 or more
The Many Hands Award: A Signed post card from the project with a personal note of thanks from John.
Pledge $20 or more Pledge $20 or more
The Pombolino: A Signed postcard from the project with a personal note of thanks from John. Sent using a Limited Edition USPS stamp with an image (O-Man or Mr. R) from the project.
Pledge $100 or more Pledge $100 or more
Ashbutton Award: A signed post card from the project with a small one-of-a-kind drawing and personal note of thanks from John. Plus a Limited Edition DVD of Part I of the project, signed by the filmmakers, John Frame and Johnny Coffeen. This edition of 500 copies has both "Three Fragments of a Lost Tale" and "Happy Medium" and runs just over 20 minutes.
Pledge $300 or more Pledge $300 or more
The Grass Bed Award: A Larger One-of-a-Kind Drawing (4 3/4" x 6 1/2") on archival paper signed by the artist. Plus, the Limited Edition DVD and a signed copy of your choice of the "Three Fragments of a Lost Tale" catalog, "Enigma Variations" catalog from the artist's retrospective exhibition in 2005, or the small "John Frame" catalog privately produced in conjunction with the artist's solo exhibition at LACMA.
Pledge $500 or more Pledge $500 or more
The Pip Award: A Limited Edition 8 1/2" x 11" archival pigment print of the photograph of O-Man as seen at the left. Signed and numbered edition of 300. OR, John will do a "Skeleton Dance Drawing" for you. Friends have used these for their businesses, and we use them as specialty labels for our gifts to family and friends (see crab apple liquor label and "Feldy fun" drawing at left). Drawn in ink and colored pencil on a specific tan English-made writing paper. See one example at the end of the left column. Both awards come with a signed catalog of your choice and the Limited Edition DVD.
Pledge $1,000 or more Pledge $1,000 or more
The Cat V Award: A signed working drawing from the project and any one of the awards listed above. A selection of these drawings may be seen here: (http://johnframesculpture.com/working-drawings) They will be available on a first come first choice basis. Plus, your name in a special place in the credit roll of the film.
Pledge $1,500 or more Pledge $1,500 or more
The Argus Award: A visit to the set (It's like watching grass grow) with a wonderful lunch (Really!) prepared by the Crew (John, Johnny and Laura). Nice wine will be served, forgoing our usual 2-Buck Chuck, and background music will be provided by classical harpist Lilian Frame Coffeen. Plus, your name in the credit roll of the film.
Pledge $3,000 or more Pledge $3,000 or more
The Crippled Boy Award: A five to seven minute piece of music composed, performed and recorded specifically for you by John. You may select the instruments (up to three) and the tone: Lullaby, World, Melancholy (my personal favorite and basically the only voice I naturally write in) or leave the choices up to me. The piece will be titled "Concatenation for....." (or something in that ballpark) and you fill in the rest. Comes as a disc or download with a printed and signed Score. Plus one award of your choice from above. Assistant Production credit on the film.
Pledge $5,000 or more Pledge $5,000 or more
Pere Jules Award: Choose any three of the awards above, from below the $3000 level. This is the award for someone who primarily wants to support us at a high level just because you believe in what we're doing. Assistant Production credit on the film.
Pledge $10,000 or more Pledge $10,000 or more
The O-Man Award for Visionary Giving: A limited edition sculpture, "Do You Know What Time It Is?" (Edition of 12). Bronze and Found Objects. Each of the 12 will be uniquely resolved compositions using the same head and a variety of found objects. Valued well beyond the contribution level. Assistant Production credit on the film. You'll also receive a personal letter from the crew welcoming you as an Honorary Tottentanzer! (The highest honor the crew can bestow.)
Project By
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John Frame is a sculptor working in the Los Angeles area. He has twice been the recipient of grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and has received the New Talent Award from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. In 1995 he was awarded the J. Paul Getty Museum’s Individual Artist Fellowship. He received an Honorary Doctor of Arts degree from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle in 2009. His work has been exhibited extensively in the United States, and haphazardly around the globe.
A survey of the artist’s work was held at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 1992. In 2005 the Long Beach Museum of Art organized a retrospective exhibition, “Enigma Variations: The Sculpture of John Frame, 1980 to 2005.” From March through June of 2011, The Tale of the Crippled Boy was exhibited at the Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical gardens in San Marino, California.
His work can be found in more than 300 public and private collections, including the permanent collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Orange County Museum of Art, the Long Beach Museum of Art, the Palm Springs Desert Museum, the University of Southern California and the Renwick Gallery of American Art at the Smithsonian Institution.
The Tale of the Crippled Boy is his first film project and will probably keep him working until the Grass grows over his head.
