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I got a piece back from a collector to check it. It is Chester, the piece on this picture.
I was hesitating to open the box because I was afraid to see a horrible doll. But I liked it! I was pleasantly surprised to see how well the condition was of this 30 year old piece. It is a hanging doll inspired on a marionette, hand sculpted into porcelain and painted with water color. Chester lived all these years in a private house.
The only thing that shocked me was the size. Only the doll itself measures 110 cm (44 inches). That is huge comparing to the scale I work in at the moment.
My friend Bohdana from the Czech Doll Club in Prague is organizing the first Doll Show ever there in cooperation with Bernina. The show will be held on April 1 through 3, 2011. They have experience with organizing quilt shows. Bohdana got interested in dolls and traveled with her husband to several international shows especially in Russia. Doll makers from the Czech Republic are encouraged to take part in the show and in the doll competition. There will be a few Russian Doll artists present with their work.
From the US Patti Medaris Culea is invited to take part in the show and to teach workshops. I am looking forward to meeting her. I will be there too! I will teach two workshops, one in air dry clay and one in porcelain and I will bring my dolls. For me it will be my first time in Prague. If you are interested in joining us please look at www.czechdollsclub.com or contact Bohdana:
bohdana.klatilova@gmail.com
Again we have had a wonderful week in Cernay la Ville near Paris where I had my yearly workshop week.
In spite of a big strike that was going on everything ran smoothly. The weather was not really warm but we have had a lot of sunshine. Janny cooked us again wonderful meals. A highlight for sure was the bore, with a second place for the canard. The pictures of the week and the results will be shown on my website. For the moment here is a group portrait with one of the dogs. On the right you can see my husband Ton and my son Sem.
Thank you Lia, Cathy, Catherine, Martha, Terry, Maggie, Erica, Ellen, Francisca, Hester and Ineke. Next year the doll holiday will not be held in Autumn but June 11 through June 18.
I am already looking forward to being in this great place in that time of the year!
Last May the famous Dutch doll artist Hannie Sarris died a few weeks after the fourth DABIDA Day. She was the founder and the beloved first president of DABIDA. We miss her very much.
To honour her we decided to call the annual DABIDA Doll Award from now on the Hannie Sarris Award. In this way Hannie will still be part of DABIDA.
Last year the theme was Balance and Sandra Orteaga from Spain won first prize. Second was Tonia Wezerijn from the Netherlands. Third place was for Nefer Kane from France. Her beautyful piece you can see on the picture.
All DABIDA artists invite you to enter this competition.
Until February first you can still take part in this challenge, that should be a challenge to yourself in the first place.
The competition is open for everyone who makes dolls in any material and there is no charge. This year´s theme is Time.
For more info please look at http://www.dabida.eu/page.php?page=Award2011 On this website you also can find everything about DABIDA and the DABIDA artists.
Finally I have seen Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8B7s01DpBTg
What a feast for the eye! These twins! Johnny Depp’s make up! And his costumes! This rabbit! Alice in her armor! I was there with two of my students and we had a great time.
You don’t want to know how this is made. You just want to enjoy the wonderful and weird world you see.
Although I am not at all interested in making a doll after someone else’s imagination I must say that this movie could be quite an inspiration. And I would like to see it a second time for sure and that is not normal for me.
One of my students, Erica van Noort, made her version of the Mad Hatter that is shown on this picture.
The fourth DABIDA day on April 11th was a huge success. I was partying all day with so many old friends and students that came by. I was happy to see my Scottish friend Stephanie Lightbown there, who brought me a book made about the Scottish Doll Project that I did with here students. What a nice surprise.
First place in the DABIDA Doll Award 2010 was won by Sandra Arteaga from Spain. She was so happy! Unfortunately it took her some time to get home again because of the vulcanic ashes from Iceland. She put her pictures on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sandraarteagadolls/sets/72157623909081582/
Next year the DABIDA Day will be held on April 10th. The new theme for the Annual DABIDA Doll award 2011 is “Time” . This contest is open for everyone. Look on the DABIDA website for more details.
Yes, yes, yes! I finally received the pictures of how the dolls from “my” Scottish girls turned out. I am very proud of them. Because these girls had no doll making background the dolls all turned out very original and fresh and full of interesting details. Very personal and different.
I cannot even tell what my favourite is. I love them all.
You can see them on http://marlaineverhelst.com/kilmarnock.htm
Good job, girls!
Sometimes you see a commercial that is so funny or so well made that it gets classic. I don’t know if Heineken showed these outside the Netherlands that is why I decided to share. The first one was already very good but they managed to come up with a second one that is even funnier. I am very fond of drinking beer myself and Heineken is not my brand but they sure know how to make a commercial.
Don’t we all want a walk in closet (or a walk in fridge)?
The first one: Heineken walk in fridge
The second one: New Heineken walk in fridge comercial
Have fun!
My new Scottish friend Stephanie Lightbown invited me to take part in a doll project she was working on with her students of the Kilmarnock Academy near Glasgow. For their art examination the students chose a poem or a subject from literature as inspiration for a doll project. This is what they picked:
Rosie: Angel-Demon
Rachel: Neptune / Sea God
Stacey: Ribbon, Bows and Buttons
Ailie: Peacock
Abby: Icarus
Kittie: Alice in Wonderland
Lucy: Octopus, sea life
Sharmaine: The Cat and the Fiddle
Sophie: Cakes and sweets
Earlier this school year the girls, all 16 or 17 years old, started making amazing inspiration boards guided by their teacher Stephanie. They also made lots of trials and experiments on what techniques to use to finish their projects. I was only involved in the sculpting parts and the painting of these parts.
Sharmaine was the only one who did not sculpt a doll’s head. She sculpted a cat.
It was interesting and fun to be part of such a special project. I love all they did and I love them all. On the pictures you see Rosie’s piece in progress and the girls in the snow holding their sculpted parts. When I will have the pictures of the finished products I sure will show them on my website. I am very much looking forward to see how everything will turn out.
The last week of October I was in France for my yearly Doll Holiday and Workshop Week. It is hard to believe but the weather was that good that several days we even could work outside in the sun. Colliii – Doll Lovers Online wrote about it on:
http://www.colliii.com/en/story/marlaine-verhelst-doll-making-course
More on my Paris page:
http://marlaineverhelst.com/parijs-eng.htm
