Balloon modelling

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A balloon artist in Vienna, Austria
A balloon artist in Vienna, Austria

Balloon modelling or balloon twisting is the shaping of special modelling balloons into almost any given shape, often a balloon animal. People who create balloon animals and other twisted balloon sculptures are called Twisters. Twisters often work as buskers, clowns, or restaurant entertainers.

Two of the primary design styles are single balloon modelling, which restricts itself to the use of one balloon per model, and multiple balloon modelling, which uses more than one balloon. Each style has its own set of challenges and skills, but few twisters who have reached an intermediate or advanced skill level limit themselves to one style or another. Depending on the needs of the moment, they might easily move between the one-balloon or multiple approaches, or they might even incorporate additional techniques such as "weaving" and "stuffing". Modelling techniques have evolved to include a range of very complex moves, and a highly specialized vocabulary has emerged to describe the techniques involved and their resulting creations.

Some twisters inflate their balloons with their own lungs, and for many years this was a standard and necessary part of the act. But many now use a pump of some sort, whether it is a hand pump, an electric pump plugged in or run by a battery pack, or a compressed gas tank containing air or nitrogen. Twisters do not generally fill their creations with helium, as these designs will not usually float anyway. The balloons for twisting are too pourous for helium and the designs are generally too heavy for their size for helium to lift.


Contents

[edit] History: The Inventor and History of Balloon Twisting

Exact information on the invention of balloon twisting is sketchy. By many acccounts, the art of balloon twisting is traced back to vaudeville and stage theatrical entertainer Henry Maar who most credit as the inventor of the modern-day art of balloon twisting.

  • His work began by privately making balloon figures in the 1920's and then doing so at public stage shows starting in Chicago in the late 1930's. Colleagues and old-time performers say that by 1959 Maar was commonly referred to by show business people and theatrical agents as "the inventor of balloon animals."


1920's

  • Maar had pleurisy as a child in the 1920's and ended up in a TB Sanitarium in Milwaukee for several years of his youth. To exercise his lungs they had him blow balloons. Over time, he started to twist several together and make things up much as a kid would. Nothing came of it at the time; he was just a kid doing what he needed to keep busy and healthy.


1930's

  • In the 1930s, Maar started working as a vaudeville entertainer -- performing as a magician in the Chicago/Milwaukee-areas. His "calling card" to agents on Wabash Avenue (where most Chicago agents had offices) was to take a balloon and turn it into an apple, writing his phone number on it with an eyebrow pencil.
  • At the time, there were a limited number of balloon types/sizes of balloons. He primarily used cigar-shaped balloons measuring 3" wide and 36" long (336's). He would tie-up the end of a 336 when a shorter balloon was required. This is how the apple balloon came into being... the tied-off end looked like the stem of the core sticking out.
  • After performing as a magician before/after a feature movie at a vaudeville theater, Maar was getting bigger shows and started to buy larger illusions. Sometime around 1938-1939, Maar was scheduled to perform as a magician at the Chicago or Oriental Theatre. He drove downtown early, parked on Wacker Drive and went to buy his first levitation illusion for a big show that night. He left his other illusions and magic props in the car.
  • When he came back later to get his props and illusions, his vehicle had been broken into and everything was gone. Since he needed the money, he did the show that night with the levitation he'd just bought and the balloons in his pocket that he'd been using essentially as "business cards."
  • For his performance, Maar went on stage, did the levitation routine and then pulled out his balloons. He made the apple then made a few animals, things he had been doing since childhood. Other than the apple, the others required twisting multiple 336 balloons together. If the longer, skinny balloons did exist at the time (2"x60"), he didn't know about them. Thus the first performance was a fluke and used a size of balloon not commonly performed with today. However, the larger, 3" diameter, played better on a big stage.
  • He only twisted a few animals that night, just enough to justify being on stage and getting a paycheck. However, theatrical agents in the audience were enthralled, told him to forget doing magic and to start doing the balloon routine. The sentiment was that everyone was doing regular "magic tricks" but that no one is doing "balloon tricks." The saw Maar's routine with balloon modeling as doing "tricks" because his trade was as a magician.
  • There was no clown suit involved nor did he twist one balloon into a dog-- as is often a basic item in the modern area of balloon modeling. Chicago-area theatrical agents offered him the same money doing balloons as he was making doing magic and to Maar the idea of not lugging all the magic props around was fine by him.


1940's

  • Throughout the late 1930's and during the 1940's, Maar performed his variety act of "balloon tricks" under the stage name "Johnny Ford." He had a medical discharge from the Army during World War II but was allowed to do USO shows when the troops were home on leave. The easy transportation of the balloons, plus the large size that could be seen by a crowd, made his act a natural for large groups of GIs to see from far away.
  • According to Mr. Maar, sometime around 1946-47 a Chicago theatrical agent offered him $50 more if he could do his magic routine one night while wearing a clown costume. The agent didn't have a clown available for the show but he figured he could use Mr. Maar as both a clown performer and a "balloon magic" act.
  • Mr. Maar's "balloon magic" rate was $50/show so he was happy to double his money for doing little more than putting on a clown suit for a night. Although that was the advent of a clown doing balloons, it wasn't seen that way at the time.
  • The balloons were still the novelty; the clown suit incidental. Most of the performances after that were still done as "balloon magic" in a performer's suit, not a clown suit. However, Mr. Maar pressed other theatrical agents with the idea he could do both the balloon magic and wear the clown outfit as a way for the agents to get Mr. Maar more work and the agents' more commissions.
  • After awhile, agents started hiring Maar more frequently to perform his balloon magic in a clown suit but he rarely was paid extra money to wear the costume. After World War II what little remained of vaudeville died out and most of Maar's work was at county fairs and shows at company holiday parties or picnics. The fact that he could do both balloon magic and clowning was what sustained him during the lean years when television surpassed vaudeville.


1950's

  • Maar also worked in clubs all over. Burt Reynolds recalled working with Maar in the mid-50's when Reynolds was a new, young comedian doing standup in New York City. One night after a rough show, Maar made Reynolds his own "balloon poodle" using his signature four balloons (a red one for the body, a yellow for the ears, yellow for the front legs and yellow for the back legs.
  • After a family issue raised by his wife about Maar having a different show name from his real name, in 1951 he starting using his real name, "Hank Maar," and dropped the "Johnny Ford" stage title. Further, while there was little intrigue to a clown named "Johnny Ford," "Hank the Clown" sort of had a ring to it.
  • In early 50's, Maar started performing on television in local cities all over America to promote the local county fairs he was performing at. He would a clown suit and make a balloon animal on the local kid's show, then tell the TV audience: "If you come to the fair tomorrow before Noon, you'll get in free if you tell them 'Hank The Clown sent me!'"
  • There's an insider joke to this as many fairs already free to anyone coming in before Noon on the opening day. However, it was a typical vaudeville gimmick -- most people didn't know that and fewer still knew the reach television would have for county fair attendance. To the amazement of managers, the next day they'd often have a long line of parents and kids showing up at the gate saying "Hank The Clown sent me." Sometimes there was a block-long line waiting before the gates opened.
  • By the mid-to-late 50's, vaudeville was dead, TV was the medium for performers and a clown suit performance was requested by theatrical agents more often than the tuxedo. The theatrical agents from the 1950's who would book Maar called him "The Original Balloon Man" and "The Sultan of Balloons." Among them were two top Chicago theatrical agents Seymour Shapiro and Howard Shultz.
  • Mr. Maar worked clubs and state or county fairs all over the Midwest, south and eastern US. Beyond Mr. Reynolds, Maar also performed with many up-and-coming acts including a show with Elvis, while his name was still Aaron.
  • However, the county fair circuit was an odd home for the end of vaudeville -- a performance style based on an audience being not so far away. At fairs in the late 40's and 50's stages were usually across a horse track from a wide grandstand. The grandstands were built for watching horse, stock car or even dog races, not stage shows. Whatever a performer did, it had to be big or no one saw it.
  • Maar's shows were increasingly outdoors and in front of grandstands that were far away, so he started doing bigger and bigger balloon animals to wow crowds. Among them were a reindeer, swan, rocking horse, giraffe, and so on. Any given balloon animal was three or four feet tall and made up of six to eight balloons. While making up each animal, he would tell a story. For example, a pair of "bunny ears" become a "rocket ship" then become an "airplane" and then become a "swan." Every time Maar added one or two more balloons a new figure appeared.
  • Most agents and audiences felt the swan was Maar's crowning achievement. For it he used 10 balloons, all but one blown up the full 36" length! The swan even laid an egg! Maar also learned how to blow balloons backward (from the far end to the near side) and created the art of accurate shooting balloons to members of the audience. Maar blew the balloon backward both to change its' shape slightly and as a stage show stunt. He shot balloons into the crowd as a way to draw the audience in, command a large area, and when needed, to stall for time should the next act not be ready.
  • Indoors, Maar figured out a way to get balloons to "boomerang" and return to him. He also figured out how to shoot and suspend them from a wall or ceiling and then pop when he wanted. Much of this he achieved by using old magic tricks where static electricity was part of how he did some of his tricks. For years this routine was considered a "magic" act more than a "clown" act.


LATE 1950's-1970's

  • By the late 1950's and during the 1960's other performers started to perform with balloons, notably John Shirley and Billy Ramono. John also used 3-36 sized balloons. The party/carnival clown and street performers using 2-60 sized balloons didn't appear in large numbers until the late 1970's and early 1980's. Twisting 2"x60" balloons (260's) into figures of all sorts were a less elaborate, quicker and easier way to do the same figure that took time using several 336's.
  • Maar and Shirley both share credit for helping spread the art of balloon modeling. Both performed on television which spread the art, including on kids shows such as Bozo Circus (WGN-TV, Chicago) where Maar appeared at least annually if not more often from the early 1960's until 1978.
  • Another way balloon modeling spread was Maar's work doing school assembly programs around the country from the 50's through the 80's. As vaudeville died and shows moved to outdoor fairs and picnics, acts that wanted to stay in the Midwest or East started doing school assembly shows during the colder months.
  • Maar was prominent on the school assembly circuit and would show kids how to put on clown makeup and make balloon animals. For nearly 25 years from the early 1950's until the late 1970's, he crisscrossed 30 states from Minnesota to Maine to Florida and showed kids the "art" of clowning and balloon modeling.
  • During most of his years as a balloon artist, Maar's balloons came from the Ashland Rubber Company in Ohio. At one time they were called Pioneer Balloons. They no longer make 336 balloons anymore, nor do they manufacture "alligator balloons" which bowed-out at one end and were used to create everything from an alligator to an elephant.
  • Maar is also credited by many as the inventor of clowns face painting children as part of their act. By the mid-1970's Maar's health began to worsen and he sometimes had trouble with the summertime company picnics that paid but required he "perform" for 4-5 hours or more going from table-to-table. Maar started to ask kids to come up to a stage, or grassy performance area under a tree, and he'd "make them up" like a clown.


End of An Era

  • The inventor of balloon twisting, Henry Maar, died in 1991 but the art of balloon modeling lives on as his legacy.
  • Sometimes called "The Sultan of Balloons: Hank Maar" and other times "The Balloon Man: Henry Maar," there's a picture of him in the earlier years at the Smithsonian's American History museum and on-line a shot from the late 40's in archives from the State of Iowa (taken from one of Maar's old brochures).


[edit] Equipment

There are two essential items required for balloon twisting:

  • First, you need an assortment of balloons, usually in various colors. Balloon sizes are usually identified by a number: the most common size of twisting balloons is called a "260", as it is approximately two inches in diameter and 60 inches in length. Thus, a "260" is 2x60 inches and a "160" is 1x60 inches when fully blown up. Although these are the most common sizes used, there are dozens of other shapes available as well. The most popular balloon brand among professional twisters is Qualatex, manufactured by the Pioneer Balloon Company, but there are many other brands available. Betallic has made strong inroads into the industry by greatly expanding their line of available shapes and colors. Today there is a wide variety of individual sizes and colors to choose from.
  • Second, you'll need something to inflate the balloons with. The most common methods are air pumps similar to bicycle pumps, electric air compressors, and via the mouth. Inflating a balloon via the mouth is difficult and can be dangerous. Particularly well-trained and talented twisters, however, can blow-up several balloons at once, and some can even blow up 160s, which are much more difficult to mouth-inflate than the more common 260s, as their narrowness requires a great deal more strength and breath pressure to inflate.


Air pumps and air compressors have only recently been accepted in the twisting community. Fifteen years ago, most balloon twisters blew up balloons with their mouths, and the use of a pump was associated by many as unprofessional. Today, most twisters use some sort of mechanical means to inflate their balloons. There are various reasons for this:

  • Most twisters are physically incapable of mouth-inflating hundreds of balloons over an extended period.
  • There are possible health risks to the twister associated with blowing up balloons by mouth. The pressure involved in the activity can cause the twister to become lightheaded or even pass out. A balloon that is popped while blowing up can snap back and damage the eyes. In rare cases, the pressure can damage the ears, eye or the muscles around the throat.
  • There are also hygienic issues involved: many twisters and parents are uncomfortable handing a child something that has been in the twister's (or anyone's) mouth. Some believe that when a blown-up balloon pops, the germs of the twister are spread further and faster than they normally would be.
  • Finally, many twisters prefer to avoid being a bad role model by putting a balloon in their mouths around children. Balloons do pose a choking hazard for small children, and are usually marked with hazard warning labels for children under the age of eight. (Note, older balloon twisters often use their mouths for other purposes such as creating small balls or deliberately popping sections of the balloon. Children frequently mimicked this posing a choking hazard.)

[edit] Simple techniques

As the twister inflates each balloon, he or she may leave some of the balloon uninflated at the end, leaving a "tail". The tail is necessary for most creations because it gives the pressurized air someplace to go while manipulating the balloon, reducing the chance of the balloon popping due to necessary pressure during the twisting process. The length of the tail is different for each creation, and knowing how much to leave becomes part of learning or creating the design.

The first animal most people learn how to create is the basic weiner dog.

    • Inflate and tie a 260 in the color of your choice, leaving about 4-5 inches of the balloon uninflated.
    • Twist 1: Starting at the nozzle (tied-off) end of the balloon, create the snout by moving the hand up about 4 inches from the knot, pinching the balloon to create a closed-off "bubble", then twist at that point 2-3 times. (Do not let go of the balloon, or it will come untwisted.)
    • Twist 2: While holding onto the snout, move up the balloon another two inches, then pinch and twist as before to create another bubble. Don't let go.
    • Twist 3: Create a third bubble the same size as the second, forming the two ears. Don't let go.
    • Folding the balloon between the two ear bubbles so that the ears are lying side by side, twist 1 and 3 together 2-3 times: this forms a "lock twist". (Now you can let go: the ears are locked in place.)
    • Repeat the process for the front and back legs: neck bubble, front leg 1, front leg 2, lock the legs together; body bubble, back leg 1, back leg 2, lock the legs together. Trim the tail if needed. Proportion will come more easily with practice.

To finish the creation the twister might use a felt-tip marker to draw a face on the dog. The most common marker used on latex is a Sharpie, a common brand of permanent marker. Other markers can be used as well. If you wish to try another kind of marker on your balloons, it is wise to test them beforehand to make sure they react well with the latex. Some markers do not dry on the latex, and smear long after being applied, which is the case with some brands of dry erase markers. Other markers contain an acidic ink that reacts with the latex, causing the balloon to pop. Cheaper markers may also have badly-shaped felt tips which can pop balloons.

[edit] Blowing up a "260" by mouth

NOTE: Blowing up a 260 or other twisting balloons can be dangerous (see above). Proceed with caution, and at your own risk.

A twister mouth-inflating a 260 balloon will typically do the following:

  • Hold cheeks in, creating a funnel shape with the mouth. A common mistake is to puff the cheeks out while blowing up the balloon, causing undue stress on the cheeks and sometimes resulting in pain.
  • With the left hand, hold the nozzle of the the balloon firmly but openly, putting the nozzle to your mouth. This hand will remain stationary until the balloon is inflated. Do not hold the balloon so tightly that it seals shut: air must be able to enter the balloon.
  • With the right hand, grab the balloon 3-5 inches away from the nozzle, sealing the balloon at that point and creating a smaller section in the balloon. (This reduces the amount of pressure required to inflate the balloon, as longer balloons are harder to blow up than their shorter counterparts.)
  • Blow into the balloon, pulling the right hand away from the face while maintaining the seal and stretching the sealed-off section. The balloon should start to expand. The twister will typically release the right hand after the entire 3-5 inch section is inflated. Once the balloon has started to expand, the rest of the inflation becomes easier. While an experienced twister can inflate an entire 260 with one breath, most beginners require 2-3 breaths to inflate the balloon after getting it started.

NOTE: Stretching the balloon prior to inflation does not significantly ease the process.

There are various reasons that some people can blow up balloons with their mouths, while others can't. Many older, experienced twisters are quite adept at mouth inflation because that method was the standard for many years. More men tend to inflate by mouth than women, and bigger people are more likely to blow up balloons with their mouths than smaller people. Also, while a 10-year old tuba player can probably blow up this type of balloon, most people under the age of 20 do not have the physical strength to blow up a 260 without a pump.


[edit] Techniques

[edit] Inflation

The familiar long, narrow balloons used by modellers require some practice to inflate properly, both because of the high pressure required and the experience needed to judge how much air to add. A length of full but not inflated (FBNI) balloon is generally left at the end, since air is forced out of the inflated portion as work progresses. The amount of twisting to be done determines the quantity of air that can safely be added before the balloon is tied shut (each twist uses up some spare FBNI).

[edit] Pinch-and-twist

The balloon is pinched off and then twisted through several rotations to form isolated bubbles. This should begin at the nozzle end of the balloon, so that FBNI material is always available to one of the bubbles being pinched, preventing a buildup of pressure.

[edit] Locking twist

Three pinch-and-twists result in four bubbles (with the last typically being the remainder of the balloon). If the first and third twist are brought together and twisted, the result will lock together, with two bubbles joined at their ends, and two free bubbles. This is also the standard "dog's head" twist. Additional security for the twist is added if one of the two free bubbles is passed between the two bubbles joined at their ends. Some call this a "security lock."

[edit] Fold twist, ear twist, pinch twist, or bean twist

Similar to the locking twist, but using only three bubbles: the center section is folded gradually, rather than hinging sharply at a twist. These can be made much smaller than locking twists, so that the center section resembles an ear or bean, but they are able to lock in a similar way.

[edit] Bird body or three bubble roll-through

This begins with a locking twist, using relatively long bubbles. Another pinch-and-twist produces another bubble, which is "rolled through" the opening between the two joined bubbles, to produce another locking twist at the opposite end.

[edit] Apple twist, tulip twist, or hook twist

The nozzle end of the balloon is inserted into the inflated balloon, by turning a short section of the balloon inside-out. The knot is then trapped in a pinch-and-twist, leaving a vaguely torus-shaped bubble. The inverted section of the balloon applies tension, and can hold relatively long bubbles. The hook twist also uses the knot to lock the twist instead of a bubble. The hook twist is created by pulling the knot down along the side of the balloon, where it is locked by a pinch twist to the remaining balloon length. A common use of the hook twist is to create a parrot's head. Variations include the yo-yo twist and marriage twist (see reference).

[edit] Poodle tail

Air is forced through the remaining length of FBNI balloon and allowed to inflate a small section at the end of the balloon. The is accomplished by applying gentle pressure to the FBNI above the bubble, preventing it from inflating, then firmly squeezing the bubble forcing the air up.

In the past, this was covered by simultaneously sucking the end of the tail, apparently causing the bubble to appear. However, because of the risk of children attempting to repeat the feat or otherwise placing balloons in their mouth, this is generally discouraged today. An alternative gimmick is to have the performer or child blow on the end of the balloon, apparently inflating it from outside.

[edit] Pop twist

The pop twist is typically used to create extra "ends" of the balloon, for instance for creating arms for a teddy bear or other character. In this case, after the neck bubble, twist one longer bubble (one arm), three 1/2 inch bubbles (two hands and a spare which will be popped), and a second longer bubble (the other arm) which is twisted to the first, creating a ring of 5 bubbles. Now ear twist the first and third of the smaller bubbles, approximately 5 full rotations each - they should be taut against the longer bubbles. Using one hand to hold all bubbles firmly, use a pair of scissors (or pin, pocket knife, etc) to pop the centre small bubble. Carefully release the two arms, ensuring that the hands stick by friction and don't unravel, revealing two separate arms and hands.

The pop twist is less durable than most other twists, and so may not be suitable for children's balloons, but can be used to create many impressive character pieces.

[edit] Common models

[edit] Single balloon

  • Basic four-legged animal: Three locking twists. The first forms nose, ears/face, and neck; the second, front legs and body; the third, back legs and tail. Different proportions can be used to represent a dachshund, a giraffe, etc.
  • Elephant: A hook twist trunk followed by a bean twist face and two large "elephant ear" twists, finished with two locking twists as above.
  • Monkey
  • Bear
  • Helmet: Three bubble roll through sized to fit a person's head.
  • Sword: Two fold twists form the cross piece, with one short and one long bubble forming the handle and blade.
  • Tommy gun

[edit] Multiple balloon

  • Monkey on palm tree
  • Big dog
  • Bear on heart
  • necks

[edit] External links

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