Art Dolls of the Obama family

Here is a wonderful article about art dolls that I hope you will find as interesting as I did. These are incredible dolls. She is a remarkable artist.

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GH woman creates First Family dolls for ArtPrize competition
Wed, Sep 23, 2009
BY MARK BROOKY
mbrooky@grandhaventribune.com

The subject of Nancy Tassin's ArtPrize entry may be presidential, but she insists it's not at all an expression of her political views. The Grand Haven woman created dolls of President Obama and his family for the Grand Rapids contest with a $250,000 top prize.

Tassin, 63, says the piece respectfully captures the humanity and hope that lies at the core of who the Obamas are and what they mean to the country."At any time, taking on the role of president is a sacrifice," she said. "But in these troubled times, choosing to run for president strikes me as a truly selfless act."

Tassin is one of 26 Northwest Ottawa County artists who have entered ArtPrize.The contest period began today and runs through Oct. 10. ArtPrize has no formal jury, curator or judge; instead, the public will decide who wins the prizes by voting, using mobile devices and the Web. Voters must be age 16 or older. The entries are scattered around different Grand Rapids venues. Tassin's dolls can be seen at Fountain Street Church, 24 Fountain St. N.W.

To see the list of area artists entered in ArtPrize, click here: http://www.grandhaventribune.com/paid/303847669517370.bsp

Tassin said she chose the Obamas as the subject for her "An American Family" piece because she is in awe of the sacrifices they are making for our nation."As I've watched the president and his family, I've been struck by the poise and determination with which he and his family have taken on this burden," she explained. "Their closeness and the support they provide to one another, seems to embody the hope our nation needs at this time. Whether or not one agrees with his policies and ideals, I feel like the Obamas as the First Family represent America's best qualities."

Each doll body is soft-sculpted out of fabric over a wire armature. The hands, feet and faces are sculpted out of polymer clay; the eyes are glass and the hair is mohair; and the costumes were made out of wool, silk and cotton.

The four subjects range in height from 10 inches to 20 inches."I am fascinated by the intricacies of people," Tassin said. "I love to study their expressions, moods and physical features. When I began working with polymer clay, I found that I could capture the essence of an individual and allow people to study a personality more intensely than they could when viewing a live subject."

In her youth, Tassin said she discovered that the visual arts allowed her to convey ideas, emotions and dreams in a way that mere words often failed to achieve. She said drawing, painting and sculpting were the vocabulary of a visual language that allowed her to share her unique view of the world with those around her.

Today, Tassin is the mother of three grown children and grandmother of five. But her art has always remained a passion, and recently she found inspiration in sculpting art dolls. Some of her dolls were recently featured in Contemporary Doll Collector Magazine.

However, Tassin said she normally does not sell or even display her work. In fact, she said her family pushed her into entering the ArtPrize competition."It's more just something I like to do," she said of the doll art.

Once she agreed to enter the contest, Tassin said she decided to make something new for it — rather than something from her collection — and it took about three months to create the Obama dolls. Her daughter, Danielle Fogel of Spring Lake, assisted her in entering the contest and setting up the display at its venue in the past few days.But Tassin said she isn't really in it to win."Winning would be wonderful, but I'm just happy to have this whole experience," she said. "I'm sorry the creating process is over. I worked on it everyday and I feel kind of empty now that it's done."

Tribune Writer Marie Havenga contributed to this story.

On the Net: www.artprize.org

http://www.grandhaventribune.com/paid/295488405937714.bsp

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Let me introduce you to BoneHead Studios

I told you before that I have become enamored of Art Dolls, but I have to say that this blog Bone Head Studios has to be my favorite of all time. Her work is nothing short of miraculous!

What I especially love is that when you visit her blog, you get to see how she makes these pieces. She takes photos as she works, so you see the process from the original sketch to the finished product.

Here are some of the pictures of finished art dolls from her blog. Please visit her and leave her a comment if you like the work. I find new ideas and new details every time I visit, and I visit often.

Art Dolls at Gallery Five

This article I found online is the best description I have ever read about exactly what makes an Art Doll.  I had to share this with you.  The links to the other artists are absolutely beautiful.  I know that if you like Art Dolls, you will love the work of these artists.  What I enjoy most about Art Dolls is that each one is an individual, much like people.  Each one has its own story, and presents itself in specific ways to the viewers.  For me, this is part of the mystique and encourages the viewers to interact with the dolls themselves on a very adult level.





One-of-a-kind handcrafted doll 22" tall
by Alice Watterson

Art Dolls, by and large, are the artist’s own interpretation of the human form. It can be abstract, impressionistic, mechanical, representative of an idea or notion, altered from a normal doll (like a really far-out barbie doll), or not even look like a doll. That is the fascination of these dolls. They are in galleries, private collections, museums all over the world. The originality of each doll is unique to the creator…but sometimes the creator or artist takes a left turn and just when you think the doll is made by an artist you can always recognize, you get a glimpse of a new and wonderful direction the artist is taking. That is amazing…instead of a world of a gazillion dolls that all look alike you now have a world of one-of-a-kind creations that can literally blow your mind.Some of my most favorite artists today: Akira Blount, Kim Goldfarb, Alice Watterson, Olga Rohl, Dima, Karen Flanders, Lynn Sward, Marge Hennen and Charla Khanna…and many, many, more wonderful artists who see the world just a little different. Viva la Difference!I invite you to experience this art form by checking out art dolls at Gallery Five.                         by Nancy Napier

Gallery Five

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Art dolls - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I have recently begun a fascination with art dolls and have been reading blogs all over the web.  I devour all I can find that describes not only what an art doll is, but also how an art doll becomes.  There are quite a few art doll artists that I find myself returning to over and over. 

When I first started reading about this subject, I found this clip to be a good starting point.  After reading this, I felt I had learned, at least in part, what being an art doll artist meant.  I also felt that I had gained some understanding of what all was involved in this fun and addicting art form.

A doll artist must be proficient in many skills - including sculpting, painting and costuming. They need an understanding the various clays used create a human or human-lie sculpt. The figure or doll is usually dressed or draped in fabrics. Costuming can be elaborate or simple. Sewing and color sense is very important. It is similar to a composition if this were a drawing or painting. It adds the sense of time and place. Portraiture is another skill a doll artist must possess. The face is the most important feature. An expressive face or telling smile can elevate a doll to art. Just like the Mona Lisa rises to the level of fine art. A well crafted figure figure rises from doll to an art doll.

Art dolls - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Where Has the Time Gone?

Well, it seems that I have been away for quite some time. What was I doing, you might ask. Well, to be honest, I'm not exactly sure. I know that I did not work on that silly rabbit, nor did I work on the new pastel I started. Instead, I have been all over town with my sister, who is visiting for the summer. She wants to go here, go there, drive me to....etc. So, although I love my sister, I have not done much that I like to do in these few months. I have enjoyed spending time with her, but I get really tired with all the going.

So not much to report here right now, I just dropped back in to let you know that I was definitely alive but hardly kicking! Soon, I hope things will get back to normal and I can finish my little bunny man.

While you're waiting for me to get busy, why not go to this site and see some really beautiful work. Or you can go to this site to see more really beautiful work.

Finally, I have returned!

Well, this blogging stuff is harder than I realized. I thought that since I spend considerable time daily online, this would be easy, but I was dead wrong. I now have more respect for those able bloggers out there that blog daily or even weekly. I must be too ADHD or something...I get so distracted once I get online. Before I know it, hours have passed and I have not done anything but sit and stare at web sites, reading about this 'n that! So, I am going to try to do better.

I tried to do a paper mache rabbit and I think he turned out pretty nice, but I just can't seem to get motivated to get him painted. So I figure if I put him up on my blog, then I will be SHAMED into giving him his personality with some paint.

So here he is.....
First picture shows him being assembled. He has a paper clay face and head on a paper mache body.

Next pic shows him getting his arms, ears and legs and feet. Here I am hoping that he will stand up by himself when he gets all assembled.

Then he is shown standing with his new legs and feet attached. Notice the pad he is standing on. That was the only way to make him stable enough to stand alone. I figured it was okay and I could cover it up with raffia or something later.

Finally, here he is in all his glory!!! He has his base coat of gesso on and is ready and waiting for color. He was originally going to be made for Easter but I blew that, so now I think he will become a Halloween Bunny all decked out in black and orange. How fun can that be?

Let me know what you think. I could really use a little input and maybe a push to finish this cute little fella.

The finished painting

Now to finish the previous post, as I finally found the pictures of this painting. I have to apologize for the quality of the photography--I never did get around to taking those photography courses. Anyway, here is the almost finished painting.



Here's the finished project. Although I didn't get the light and colorful results that Lori does, I still like the picture. I don't think it evokes quite the whimsey of her paintings, but I do think I get the same feeling. Anyway, this was my attempt to emulate her.



I did learn quite a bit about myself and my artistic talent while working on this. I think that is why it took me so long to finish it. In the end though, I feel pretty good about both myself and my painting. I know that I am not ever going to be Rembrandt, but I certainly will enjoy myself trying!

What do you think? Feel free to leave a comment, even if you say you hate it! I'd love to hear what your thoughts are.