MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
Suits of armor were developed back in the Middle Ages. They served as protection during battle. They also became an art, and one metalworker is keeping this ancient art alive. Instead of armoring people, though, he is creating suits for mice. Yeah, you heard that right. Deena Prichep explains.
DEENA PRICHEP, BYLINE: Suits of armor have fascinated Jeff de Boer since he first saw one as a kid at a museum in Calgary.
JEFF DE BOER: Armor is like one of the first evolutionary defenses against a hostile world. If you have an exoskeleton, you can survive the bite of some other monster.
PRICHEP: De Boer's dad was a sheet metal fabricator, and he spent his childhood playing around in the shop and had even built a few suits of armor, but they took a long time. De Boer ended up at art school studying jewelry making. And as he was working with those tiny tools, he had an idea.
DE BOER: Oh, my God, I could build a suit of armor for a mouse. And (laughter) I just remember handing that mouse in, and the teachers were silent. And they said, Jeff, I don't think you have to worry about making jewelry anymore.
PRICHEP: De Boer still makes the occasional piece of jewelry or sculpture, but primarily, he's made a name for himself in fine art as a mouse armorer. Sometimes he makes cat armor too. His work is in galleries and sold to collectors. And yeah, he's heard the comments.
DE BOER: You get those messages on social media. It's just like the big why. Why? Well, you know, why make anything?
PRICHEP: This thing that started as something of a joke has become an art. And the armor, which we should note De Boer does not put on actual mice, are amazing. Hinged visors to protect a whiskered face, intricately detailed rivets and fittings and joined plates to cover the tail - they give nod to everything from Viking tradition to Indian empires to samurai helmets.
DE BOER: The nice thing with mouse scale is that you get to do a whole lot of neat things. You get to explore all of the different cultures, all the different forums.
PRICHEP: De Boer recently taught a mouse armor master class in Seattle. Students used sanding belts to smooth out wooden shapes to mold armor around.
(SOUNDBITE OF SANDING BELT RUNNING)
PRICHEP: They designed their own armor patterns and then punched each piece out of copper sheets.
DE BOER: Wait for it.
(SOUNDBITE OF TOOL PUNCHING METAL)
DE BOER: There it goes.
PRICHEP: And gently hammered and soldered and smoothed them into the finished forms.
(SOUNDBITE OF HAMMERING)
PRICHEP: These students aren't necessarily looking to start their own mouse armies. Thiago Vidotto designs video games and wanted to learn real-world construction to make his virtual creations more believable.
THIAGO VIDOTTO: To make something real when it's digital, it needs to have imperfections, 'cause nothing's perfect. So you have to learn where you can add the distress, where it could be a problem.
PRICHEP: Student Laurie Raubacher signed up because, as a new artist, she wanted to improve her metalwork technique. And also because it's mouse armor.
LAURIE RAUBACHER: I really appreciate the whimsical nature. Like, it's just there to be enjoyed.
PRICHEP: And Jeff de Boer says that joy can also be an inspiration. As a small-scale artist, de Boer's often felt like the little guy. He kind of identifies with the mouse. And he sees a lot of people feeling that way as they navigate the world.
DE BOER: The idea that the mouse could find an edge, that it could put on a suit of armor and go out there and maybe make a difference, I think that is what we're all dreaming about.
PRICHEP: And maybe exploring this ancient craft on mouse scale could inspire people to suit up and slay their dragons or just create a gorgeous helmet that could fit on your thumb.
For NPR News, I'm Deena Prichep.
(SOUNDBITE OF CHRISTOPHER LARKIN'S "QUEEN'S GARDENS") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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