Alexandra Exter

In 1926, Alexandra Exter was approached by the Danish film director, Urban Gad, to design the sets and marionettes for a film which was to tell the story of Punch and Colombine. The carnivalesque play, with roots in the 16^th century commedia dell’arte, transports the characters from Venice to contemporary New York. The film was never realised but Exter created 40 marionettes, exhibited the following year at the gallery Der Sturm in Berlin, as well as numerous stage designs and paintings on the theme.

Exter’s stage designs are striking for the constructivist emphasis placed on their exposed surface textures and the architectural logic of their structures. The simplified structures that correspond to the actors' movements, further enhance the interaction between the actors and the audience. To achieve this, Exter created a combination of steel-like geometric constructions, elevated walkways and interlinked red stairs, all of which can be found in this stage design for the ballroom scene in Colombine’s Scarf.