From trolls to Trump, Ken Vogel's puppets on display at Mount Horeb museum

GAYLE WORLAND
Jan 11, 2024
Jan 11, 2024 Updated Jan 30, 2024

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Ken Vogel’s whimsical marionettes on exhibit at the Driftless Historium in Mount Horeb bear an uncanny resemblance to high-profile politicians, prolific artists, colorful storybook characters and even a cow.

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Ken Vogel with troll marionettes — Puppet artist Ken Vogel leads visitors through an exhibit of his work at the Driftless Historium in Mount Horeb. Vogel created the imaginative troll marionettes, left, expressly for the show as a salute to Mount Horeb's favorite mythological character.
AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL

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Ken Vogel with Joe Biden troll marionette — Puppet-maker Ken Vogel holds up a marionette he made that depicts President Joe Biden as a troll for a show in Mount Horeb, the self-proclaimed "Troll Capital of the World." At left are troll versions of politicians Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders.
AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL

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Ken Vogel working on puppet in his apartment — Puppet-maker Ken Vogel creates the base of a marionette using layers of newspaper in his East Side Madison apartment.
AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL

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Ken Vogel's home studio — Artist Ken Vogel, in his Madison home studio, estimates he has made more than 10,000 puppets over 53 years as a puppet-maker.
AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL

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Ken Vogel's Groucho Marx puppet — Ken Vogel adjusts a display of his Groucho Marx marionette at the Driftless Historium in Mount Horeb. Groucho is designed so that a puppeteer can make his eyebrows go up and down.
AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL

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Frank Lloyd Wright puppet in progress by Ken Vogel — "Puppets on Holiday," an exhibit of work by Madison artist Ken Vogel on display at the Driftless Historium in Mount Horeb, includes step-by-step instructions. A work in progress shows a marionette depicting Frank Lloyd Wright, Vogel's bestselling subject.
AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL

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Ken Vogel working on clay puppet head — Puppet-maker Ken Vogel works on a puppet for a customer at his home studio in Madison.
AMBER ARNOLD, STATE JOURNAL

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