Art doll
Art dolls are objects of art, rather than children's toys, created in a wide variety of styles and media, and may include both pre-manufactured parts or wholly original works.
Creation
Art dolls production demand a wide range of skills and technologies, including sculpting, painting, and costuming.
Materials
A variety of media may be employed in the creation of an art doll, including fabric, paperclay, polymer clay, wax, wood, porcelain, natural or synthetic hair, yarn, wool, and felt.
Demand
One of a kind (OOAK) art dolls may command prices in the thousands of dollars; publications featuring established and emerging doll artists support collection, and artist groups, such as the National Institute of American Doll Artists, promote the art form. Art Doll Quarterly by Stampington & Company is one example of a print publication exclusively dedicated to engaging doll artists and collectors.
Work in high demand- such as the elaborate ball-jointed ceramic dolls of Marina Bychkova -fetch prices from $5,000 to $45,000, and are collected by the likes of Louis Vuitton designers.[1]
Events
2008's Melbourne Fringe Festival featured the work of Rachel Hughes and curator Sayraphim Lothian, amongst others.[2]
Controversy
In 2010, Facebook banned images of an art doll posted by Sydney jeweller Victoria Buckley; included were images of a semi-naked doll used to display jewellery in her shop window.[3] The doll was the work of Bychkova's.