Category: dolls

Shave the Baby

February 23rd, 2009

Some of you may never forgive me for this image, but I take my responsibility as a purveyor of oddities seriously. My faithful reader OhTheHumanity (who will get a feature post soon) sent this over.

This item is fundamentally wrong on so many levels, it nearly caused my brain to short circuit.

Would anyone in the universe purchase this for a child? Would that child ever recover? Was it in fact manufactured by sadistic psychotherapists to ensure a pressing need for their services?

Note: if your baby is afflicted with this particularly disturbing pattern of hirsutism, please enlist the help of a doctor immediately.
Obama Masks

January 28th, 2009

This election has encouraged more artists, manufacturers and enthusiastic people to try their hand at creating a unique Obama product, and the trend is not unique to America. This Obama mask has become a top seller in Japan.

According to the report, “people are using this mask for business and pleasure.” Supposedly it captures that Obama energy, though I’d be more inclined to say it captures a unique and enthusiastic creepiness.
Kerry Kate’s October Effigies

October 24th, 2008

What a perfect time of year to post Kerry Kate’s work. She hand makes incredibly unique, gauzy, tarnished, deliciously detailed dolls.

Her oddly shaped torsos are painted with a ghostly kind of realism, adding the appearance of depth to a simple piece of stuffed canvas.

She achieves a great antique feel in her pieces, as if they are heirlooms from Great Grandma’s attic (if Great Grandma had a hint of darkness to her sensibilities).

See more of her work on her website.
Baby Alive Part 2

October 22nd, 2008

The absolutely incredible retroCRUSH (a treasure trove of vintage goodness) actually featured the obscenely artificial Baby Alive food packets I recently mentioned.

Here they are, shown in mixed glory on the refill packets (I remember the “Yummy Banana” having a distinct bright yellow shade though):

And now for your additional amusement, a Baby Alive comic, a.k.a. advertisement, also from retroCRUSH (click to enlarge):

I love the final exclamation: “WE EVEN GET TO CHANGE HER DIAPER!” Oh kiddies, just wait…I don’t speak from experience, but I’m pretty sure the act of diaper changing does not remain thrilling privilege it appears to be.
Baby Laugh-A-Lot and Baby Alive

October 18th, 2008

Okay, we all know that THE original bad*ss doll was Talky Tina from the Twilight Zone.

I had Baby Alive, which was only slightly less terrifying because it didn’t possess the power to kill. I remember mixing the “food,” which came in three blindingly unnatural shades of red, yellow and green gel. After spoon feeding, the substance would drip through the doll and into the diaper. Even as a toddler, the sight of neon gel dripping from my doll’s nether regions was disturbing.

Do you dare to remember?

Now, Baby Alive is back, with a modern (though no less uncomfortable) twist on her appearance:

On a related note, I came across this commercial for Baby Laugh-a-Lot, whose frozen open mouthed grin and maniacal cackle put Talking Tina and Baby Alive to shame. Even the children in the ad look shocked and miserable as they whip their head around to see where the awful racket is coming from.

Anyone have a favorite old toy which is, in retrospect, absolutely unholy?
Mari Shimizu

October 12th, 2008

I had to navigate a number of Japanese sites (despite the fact that my computer doesn’t read Japanese characters) to track down a little gallery of Mari Shimizu’s work.

Her doll creations are phenomenal. Ethereal, haunting, beautiful, unsettling…some expressing powerful emotion, others transfixed in a lifeless plastic stare that uncomfortably juxtaposes their lavish surroundings.

The photography techniques add much to the display of her projects. She seems to carefully choose the lighting and tone, whether a warm glow or harsh blinding daylight, creating an effect that’s almost cinematic.

Highly recommended if you enjoy this type of craft.
Ospedal Delle Bambole

September 18th, 2008

Cabinet of Wonders drew my attention to this amazing little place in Napoli (now added to my Italian destinations list).

As someone who loves art, science and sociology equally, I’m extremely interested in the ways people choose to replicate and display the human form. Thus my fascination with creepy dolls makes perfect sense, and should not surprise anyone.

(The above photo looks like something I would do with spare doll parts…because it “seemed like a good idea at the time”)

I wish there were a more definitive travel guide to these typically unseen treasures. Over the years, I suppose I’ve been compiling my own.
Scott Radke

August 27th, 2008

Scott Radke has been one of my favorite doll/marionette makers for many years. These are the bastard toys the “nice” kids don’t like to play with, the magnificent outcasts of the puppet community.

His creations are rarely without an air of sorrow, a forlorn sense of hopelessness (as if self conscious of their own mismatched bodies and sickly faces).

And sometimes…they are just chilling.

If he ever made a stop-motion film, or designed props for a motion picture, I’d be ecstatic!
Christiane Cegavske

August 24th, 2008

I watched Blood Tea and Red String last night, and was quite impressed.

Thirteen years in the making, Christiane Cegavske’s dialog free film tells the tale of the struggle between the aristocratic White Mice and the rustic Creatures Who Dwell Under the Oak over the doll of their heart’s desire. The Mice commission the Oak Dwellers to create a beautiful doll for them. When she is complete, the Creatures fall in love with her and refuse to give her up. Resorting to thievery the Mice abscond with her in the middle of the night.

This stop motion fairly tale cloaks some rather dark messages of obsession and socio-political commentary. It’s probably not for everyone…but I loved it and I’m eagerly awaiting the sequel: Seed in the Sand due out in 2012. Anyone intrigued by the style of the more mainstream Jigsaw puppet in the Saw film series should definitely pay homage to Cegavske’s craftsmanship by watching her film.

In addition to the painstaking (though certainly worthwhile) effort of these films, Christiane Cegavske also has galleries of other mixed media arts on her website.

Although there is some phenomenal digital art out there, I’ll always have a soft spot for tangible creations that get an artist’s hands dirty.