Quinlan Doll and Teddy Bear Convention 2014

I just returned from the Quinlan show this past week and I am still in the process of getting the studio back together and ready for the next round of work.  This was the first time I traveled so far from my northwest home base for a show.  I had heard such wonderful things about Quinlan from other artists that I could not resist seeing it for myself.  I also took an extra day to tour Philadelphia.  Like the true sculpture junkie I am I had to document every statue and relief in sight and I will share just a few here as well as some of my favorite work from the show itself.

 I am definitely a fan of ornate buildings.  The more carving, gingerbread, sculptures and details you can pile on the better.  I looked across the street from this gorgeous building and see the sleek glass modern cubes and they simply do not compare in my eyes.  This building took 30 years to complete - not something you see in the modern age. Sigh

 

Coming from the land of the Craftsman home, these neighborhoods were particularly charming.

 

I had to visit some of the historical sites as well (you must set a good example for the children after all) so here you have the final resting place of Benjamin Franklin (above) and the Hall of Independence viewed from the Liberty Bell building (below).  Since Franklin's famous quote is "A penny saved is a penny earned" it is customary to toss pennies on his grave.  Interesting, since he is encouraging people to SAVE pennies.

Back at the show, over 125 doll and bear artists presented their work.  The bear artists took me on a bit of a trip down memory land since I sold artist bears in a shop I worked in when I fist moved to Seattle 21 years ago.  I overheard several conversation where bear artists became fans of dolls and doll artists discovered bears.  There were countless inspiring pieces in both categories so it was hard to pick only two to share here.  While these are by far not the only great artists I could have chosen from I also had to select from the best of the photos I had taken.

I had seen Nina Tugarina's work (above) in photos before but it is truly stunning in person.  I also met the very sweet Natalie Ruiz who won an award for this piece (below) which I believe is called "Tangled".

Without a doubt, the best reason to attend Quinlan is the sheer amount of quality work you can see in one day.  Personally, I would return for the company of fellow artists who were all very open and friendly and included this sole traveler in their circles, as well as for the generous and gracious hosts of the show, Susan and Terry Quinlan.

Polar Elf Fashion

I have been away from my blog for far longer than I anticipated!

 This year has been full of twists and turns largely of the undesired kind but I am happy to say the most wonderful things have been happening in my artistic life.  I have been accepted into a talented group of artists- The Professional Doll Makers Art Guild!  My White Rabbit is on their cover page currently.  The link to the site is http://www.artdollguild.com/.  There are some amazing artists in this group whose careers I have followed and I am honored to now be a member.  If you are interested in seeing the variety offered in the art doll world, this site is a great place to start. And I get to check this off of my Bucket List! Cheers!

Working in the studio is such a solitary environment it is easy to forget that my work is actually out there being seen and collected.  I tend to feel like a mad scientist here some days working furiously away on my latest must-creates and ticking away to do lists. I am now preparing for a holiday show and getting around to galleries in an attempt to balance the in-studio and out-of-studio time. 

So what is materializing from all of this?

Elf Fashion

 Not the cover girl you were expecting, is it?

I will venture to guess you have not spent much time pondering this subject but there is a job for everyone and currently this is mine.  I tend to think that if a being is around for very long periods of time (hundreds of years, let's just say) they would tend to have a large repertoire of fashion history under their belts.  Elves must create.  It is part of their job description.  I don't think they would just get up, throw on sweats and haphazardly sling paint and hammer day in and day out.  No way, not a very romantic notion by any means.  In my estimation of elf culture (insert knowing raise of eyebrows) they would have wardrobes as varied and eccentric and they are bound to be themselves.  No simple red shifts and puff-topped sock shoes here please.  My latest little pair reflects a mix of classic, Victorian and a touch of steampunk.

Colette and Pierre

Edgy elves may not be a household phrase just yet but give it time.  I will keep designing away here, mixing up decades and trims, the sleek and shabby, throwing in a potion or two to see what falls together.  Life can be unpredictable; mix things up and have fun!

The Wicked Witch's Story

Funny how things that you love as a child fade and reappear in new and interesting ways.  I grew up in Kansas in the days prior to instant internet access to anyone anywhere.  I had a vivid imagination and loved movies and books.  The movie "The Wizard of Oz" was my favorite and it was only on television once per year.  Yes, I am dating myself a bit but there you have it.  I wanted to be Dorothy and I was terrified of the witch and her flying monkey minions.  I would watch her scenes with the blanket pulled up under my nose, not wanting to miss anything but not wanting to see it either. Margaret Hamilton portrayed a wicked witch in her most classic form brilliantly in my opinion.  That cackle is burned into my memory.

A few weeks ago we went to see the new Oz movie which we all enjoyed a great deal.  One of the things I loved was how they made the Wicked Witch of the West a likable character.  That is something that the writers of the television show "Once Upon a Time" do so well with all of their stories- make you empathize with even the darkest character.  They give them a past, a heartbreak, a seemingly valid reason to behave as they do so you no longer see them in the same way.  When I set about making my own Wicked Witch of the West I decided to combine my original mental images of the 1939 version of the Wicked Witch and the new softer version to create this likeness.  I wanted her to still have some of her original beauty tinged with the beginnings of a broken and darkening heart.

 It was her tears in the new film that really struck me.  This witch that once petrified me to the core suddenly had a heart. My Wicked Witch had to include her tears.

 I like to include many trims and details on my art dolls so I beaded extra emerald beads into her bodice, hat and over-sized boots.  She has dual-toned stitching, , feathers, frayed fiber details and her gown is a mix of fine beading and tattered, flowing ribbons of fabric. 

I will continue to bring some of my favorite characters to life with new twists and what-ifs but for now I am enjoying the company of this new witch.  I have enjoyed my little trip down Memory Lane here in my northwest home noting that it is a little funny that I ended up moving from Kansas to Seattle, the Emerald City.  I assure you it was coincidence, my passion for Oz would not have dictated that kind of real life move, but it was amusing to think about.

Carpathian Circus

One of the wonderful things about creating a world of your own is that you are limitless in characters, events, places and abilities. I love the idea of the circus- a traveling make-believe world.  When I was very young and staying with my grandparents one summer I woke up to find a circus setting up in a large field across the street from their house.  I remember staring out the front window waiting to get a glimpse of something fantastic.  We did cross the street at one point and a kind man there let me pet one of the horses- magic for a child.  Even now I have a sign in my office that might be more reflective of both my active household and studio space combined, saying "Impossible you say? Nothing is impossible when you work for the circus!"

  Based on these ideas, the most recent Griffinwyse growth has been the development of the two circuses; The Carpathian Winter and Midsummer Circuses.  The Winter Circus is a vision of black, white, grey and red.  It is a more mysterious, dark web of magic and illusion and its patrons and performers reflect that feel.

 Here is Deirdre, a fortune teller with the Carpathian Winter Circus who finds sprouting horns most entertaining when trying to keep patrons honest during a reading.

 Ciardha and Chandara are vampire sisters.  Circus-goers believe this is a disguise, merely amazing make-up to add to the other-worldly atmosphere under the great tents.  The true great secret of both circuses is that everything one sees is truly skillful magic disguised as illusions.  Feasting on patrons is not allowed, however, as these two can attest.

The Midsummer Circus is a celebration of color, characters and imagery.  They are a wonderland of the odd and interesting wrapped in trims and nonsense. Why two circuses, you may ask?  I believe it is opposites that I love most- dark and light, sinister and innocent, and the very opposition that makes each side more distinct when compared to the other.  Would I want to attend a moody circus of dark and interesting characters in the season when darkness comes early and spooks and goblins seem most likely to wander? Yes, please.  Would I be just as eager to see a circus manned by curious characters of borderline sanity romping in the spring? Sign me up.  Let them (as they say in show business) entertain you!

 Sweet Tessa, a face-painter with the Midsummer Circus, loves children.  She skillfully paints anything a child desires in no time at all, sending them happily skipping off to their next destinations transformed.

Celeste is a perfect example of the merry clothing that adorns the performers of the Midsummer Circus.

There will be larger, elaborate characters added to each circus as time allows as well as more of the loop-jointed and fully poseable art dolls and figurines.  On the list waiting to be brought to life; the bearded lady, tarot card reader, magician, witch/wizard, balloon artist, etc. Who might you be interested in seeing?

Coming in my next blog- a little trip to a place called Oz, revisiting my favorite childhood film!

Making dolls with my daughters

I mention my daughters frequently as my chief inspiration.  Over the years we have experimented with nearly every kind of art and craft we have seen or hear of together.  Now that they are getting a little older they are interested in trying more complex tasks and they recently asked if I could show them how to make their own dolls.  We started these over the holiday break and they really did take their time with them and enjoy the process.  The most surprising thing for me was their final products which turned out to be interesting,quirky dolls that really reflected a little of each of their personalities.  I should also point out that I merely demonstrated techniques, the dolls were completely made by the girls and everything from the faces, fabrics and accessories was their own design.  With their permission I will share their photos and dolls with you.

Olivia had her eye on a bold black and white fabric and it became the starting point for her doll's style.  She picked purple eyes from my selection of handmade eyes and her color palette was complete.  She also took the most time sculpting her face, working and reworking it until it was just the way she wanted it.  Olivia loves to draw faces so she approached sculpting one with as much dedication. At the end of the project she decided she liked painting the features and thinking up the dress design.  She also determined she has little patience for sewing by hand and was not overly fond of how long it took to put hair on properly.  She thought her doll resembled the Snow White character from the show Once Upon a Time and she has been named Mary Margaret.

Eden started off with a certain color of hair she just HAD to use and some decorative chain.  She also loves the elf ears I use on a large percentage of my work so her doll also has these.  She worked through the sculpting phase pretty quickly and her doll had a sweet little expression.  She was really most interested in moving on to makeup, hair and sewing the clothes.  Eden's doll, Bridget, turned out to be half rock'n'roll/goth and half sweet, caring soul much like the artist herself.  She diligently hand-sewed all of the clothing and accessories and mounded as much of the red-blonde hair she could squeeze onto Bridget's little head.  Both of the girls mixed in a streak of a different color into their hair designs for a little edgy look.

My youngest is too little to make her own doll but she is our official Board of Cuteness Approval.  She would stop by frequently and check on the girls' progress, sometimes giving the dolls a kiss with her customary phrase "awwww, tyoot."
Tyoot = cute.

Once the dolls were complete we had a photo shoot which you see here.
We had a wonderful time working together.  They are proud of what they were able to accomplish and I was impressed with how creative and original they were.  They often joke with me about my love of unusual things but it seems a little of that may have rubbed off on them.  One great thing about this experiment is that as soon as they finished these dolls and were looking them over sharing their thoughts they immediately starting thinking about what they would do differently and what they would add to their next project.  I cannot wait to see what they come up with next.

A Bride and Books

A few months ago I made Delphine, the first of my jointed dolls.  Little did I know she would start a whole line of jointed dolls.  I have become a bit addicted to making these recently.  There is a certain attraction to the movement and fabrics.  Today I finished my first bride and really took a trip down memory lane.  Years ago I was a bridal designer.  Working on this doll took me back to the few hundred fittings I was party to and all of those amazing brides.  My favorite day when working with each bride was the day they came in to pick up their gown and try it on one last time before their big day.  There was always so much emotion that day, each face a kaleidoscope as they turned this way and that looking at the dress they would walk down the aisle in.  Always favorite memories of mine.

Today my client was smaller but just as adorable.  She has been dubbed "Morrin" and I would like to share a few photos of her progress with you today.  Here she is with a freshly painted face, ready for hair.  I have many different colors of hair here but red seemed to fit her best.  This is also my favorite part of their transformation - bald to flowing locks...

I love wild hair so I may have left her a little unruly but even the most casual bride I ever worked with had a constructed "windblown" look, so I slightly tamed her locks under a jeweled tiara.

The Griffinwyse world is all magical creatures and folklore from every culture so I try to incorporate some unique elf folktales whenever I can.  In this case I started thinking of all of the luck and superstitions involved in weddings.  There are so many little things brides try to do to ensure their good fortune - some who feverently believe in their power and consequences and some who are simply nodding to their cultures.  Whatever the reason, I love traditions.  For my little elf bride I imagined it to be good luck to pin a photo of your loved one to the bride's gown.  Since elves of all kinds have such long lives, they must not jump into marriage quickly and their weddings would be few but marvelous events.  I printed photos of past elves I have made to pin to her gown, plus a few photos for her book.

I have always written a few details about each elf on my site but as their numbers grow they and the world they live in becomes more clear in my mind, there seems to be more to tell.  I believe any piece of art speaks to its owner and my elves all develop their own personality as I sculpt.  A tilt of the head or twinkle in an eye all offer hints on what they might be or do.  To give a little more insight into each doll, they are now coming with their own Griffinwyse scrapbook.  Each book is also handmade and I write a few more paragraphs about each elf and include photos and handwritten notes by each character.  My intention is that these will help bring them to life for each new companion who takes them home.

Morrin's gown came together easily.  One of the things I really loved about bridal gowns were the lace choices.  They were so beautiful and I never got tired of hand-sewing them onto the gowns.  There is something magical about a wedding gown that you simply do not get in any other garment.  The sentiment, the fact that it is made just for you, the detail and time that is no longer put into making garments for the majority of women.  Applying lace is like the icing on a cake, so beautiful you cannot help but enjoy yourself.  Here is the front of her gown with the photos attached.

Of course no bride can be complete without her engagement ring so I made sure Morrin had a lovely crystal ring.

Once the details were in place, her book finished and signed, it was time for photos.

I will be finishing commissions over the next week and my girls will be out of school until after the new year so time in my studio will be a bit harder to come by but new elves will be arriving!  I am anxious to get some festive Polar Elves out before Christmas.  I hope you have a wonderful holiday season and I will be back to my blog after the new year!

A Renaissance Tale

I just finished another framed art doll.  This one emerged entirely from the face.  I tend to work strictly on instinct.  When this interesting face appeared and I instantly saw the whole piece in my mind.  It was exciting because I have not worked often in a more pastel palette and I was initially wondering if it would fit into my "look".  Ottavia (as she has been newly dubbed) started with a serene expression and a slightly longer face.  It reminded me of the film "The Tale of Despereaux."  I loved the colors in that movie so that gave me a direction.  First order of business - a tiny violin.

Stringing the violin.

I used one of our violins to model this one and strung it as realistically as possible.  The bow also has "hair" to give it that true-to-life feeling as well.

Here are the finished pieces.

I designed a gown befitting a proper young lady and created sheet music that will lay in the corner and began to set up the final arrangement.

 

 I painted the more pastel palette and used my aging technique.

I loved the tranquil feel of all of the colors coming together but it still had that bit of drama I adore.

Then Ottavia was given a mane of fair hair.

As a final touch I added a portrait of William Byrd.  He was an English composer of the Renaissance and wrote for Queen Elizabeth.  A little bit of history for you.

At last Ottavia was complete and secured to her frame.  I find I love working in frames.  It gives me the chance to create an environment that can tell a little more about each character and I am sure it won't be long before another face inspires another framed work.