Creative Process

My creative process is not a straight line. It’s more like a conversation — between my hands, my ideas, my memories, and the traditions of my country. Every piece I make begins with a feeling, not a design. I don’t sit down and think, “This is exactly how it must look.” Instead, I ask myself a simpler question:

What do I want this character to make people feel?

From that point, everything starts moving.

I begin with sketches, quick and imperfect, just enough to capture an emotion or a personality. Once the idea feels alive on paper, I move into the construction — the part where intuition takes over. I build the structure light enough to dance, strong enough to survive wind, movement, and celebration. I cut, glue, sew, reinforce, adjust. Sometimes a puppet fights back; sometimes it surprises me.

I don’t rush the process.
The character tells me when it’s ready.

Color comes last, and it’s my favorite stage. This is where the piece finally becomes itself. I choose every tone based on mood: warmth for joy, contrast for mystery, softness for nostalgia. Painting is where I let my naive instincts lead. It’s where the puppet starts looking back at me.

And then comes the most important part — the moment when someone steps inside the piece. That is when my work truly completes itself. The movement, the posture, the human heartbeat inside the giant frame… that’s where the magic happens. My role is to create the body; the person inside gives it a soul.

My creative process is simple in words but deep in practice:
observe, imagine, build, refine, paint, and let it live.

Every mojiganga, every Catrina, every character follows this journey. It’s a mixture of craft, emotion, tradition, and the stubborn joy of bringing something new into the world.

— Antonio Lapierre