Experimentation on Body Formation

Doll final paint one

She does not have a name at this point but my plan was to make a doll inspired by AfroPunk and Afrofuturism. Her head is paperclay overlaid with cloth and painted using acrylic with acrylic yarn for hair. I was trying to see if I could get the cloth to have the look of skin by using pantyhose. But, I felt that the pantyhose revealed too much of the batting underneath.

The hands are pretty terrible.

I also made a torso from paperclay and decided to use it for the body and cover it in batting and fabric.

She also has wire armature underneath and is posable.

However, the feet and hands are rough. Plus, the stitching on this doll upon close inspection is not great. I had big ideas and sorta just figured it out as I went along which is not a bad thing. Some of the dolls in my portfolio are made that way and turn out really nice. Sometimes, I feel like taking a hiatus from my own rambling mind and follow the pattern of another doll artist. After all, that’s how I began making dolls as an adult. I bought a book for primitive dolls with patterns included and followed along. I’d love to see and/or hear about other artists who experiment and mix materials.

I like the shape of the feet and could cover up the flaws with boots, I guess…

What I have learned from using a wire for pose-ability is that the bend at the elbows and knees does not look natural. Maybe when the doll is covered in clothing it won’t matter as much but I had to try it.