NIADA Gallery
NIADA is an international organization of artists and patrons dedicated to the art of the contemporary doll
MessageI have been making dolls for about 25 years. Each of my painted cloth dolls is one of a kind—designed, sewn, stuffed, and painted by myself. I am fascinated by how the flat plane of the cloth can be sewn and shaped into a fully dimensional form. And then I add the face using only paint, so that in spite of the appearance of sculptural forms, the face is actually flat. It always makes me think of the relation between the real and the illusion, which is of course what dolls are about.
I have been making very small dolls lately; six to ten inches tall. I like the way that scale implies a whole different world. Also, I have been using more and more hand sewing. I like seeing the evidence of the hand, which increases the intimacy of the piece. My dolls are intended to be experienced as you hold them in your hand.
Old dolls fascinate me. I see them as a true record of history; of how people envisioned themselves and their place in the world. I like the way time leaves its marks on cloth dolls. Some old cloth dolls will actually have had more than one face over time. And so it seems right to me that I paint the faces in layers, compressing the effects of time, if you get my meaning.
I started making dolls when I was a little girl. My Grandmother taught me to sew at an early age, and later I earned a B.S. degree in Fine Art from the University of Wisconsin. Both of these things were important to my doll making. I experimented with many different materials, but for me, cloth seems to be the natural choice. So familiar and so versatile, it has both the historic aspect and the tactile qualities that appeal to me.
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