Spun from dreams, her work is haunting, mesmerising, unique..
The photograph that you see, is not of her work, but of my own. Paper dolls literally litter my house. They are tucked between the pages of books, they live on the stages of cigar boxes, they are sheltered within jars, they are trapped between layers of glass. I cut them so often, they have become ubiquitous in my fairyland.
.
The ReigningPaperDollQueen has reminded me that they are an art unto themselves.
.
This particular paper doll figure was brought back from a tour of Italy in the early 1980's. She is proof that even while on vacation, I think about making paper dolls. At approximately two and a half feet tall, this is one of my larger pieces. .
Many people have told me she looks like a movie star. To me she is a paper doll, a fragment from fairyland, trapped for as long as I can keep her in a piece of crystal cave. On the top, which you can probably hardly see, is a well loved motheaten Victorian bird.
.
People who have seen my exhibits know that I do similar pieces of glass with tiny figures encases in them as jewelry. These pieces are usually from one to three inches in size and are typically done as pendants. In perusing the blog, I am sure you can spot one or two.
.
The figures are also used to create glass covers for my handmade books. The most elaborate one of these is "The Book in the Attic".
.
My work goes three dimensional very rapidly. This is also true of my glass work. There is nothing flat about it for very long. Often, it's not possible to encase the dolls in glass. I'll be working on one, and they will have become so heavily embellished that they no longer lie flat enough to go under glass; they may be so active that they require an entire shoebox stage.
.
I promise, Louise, I'll try to dig one of those out, too. :)
.
After brewing a cup of tea, and settle in, and fall down the rabbit hole to: www.artandghosts.typepad.com
