Time and Space in Wonderland

The sense of time and space in Wonderland is quite discombobulated. The rabbit keeps running past looking at his stopwatch, Alice grows and shrinks, and logic is thrown out the window.

Alice grows and grows while inside a house, and her arm went out the window and her foot went up the chimney. I was always fascinated with this image. What if Alice had actually popped out of the house? What if she never got smaller - would she have to walk around as a huge person wearing a house?

Here's my Alice in Wonderland doll, made in conjunction with the Art Dolls Only Wonderland Challenge.

She's made with paperclay, cloth, wood, mixed media, and painted with acrylics. She's about nine inches tall (sitting).

I was rummaging through my ribbon collection, came across this wonderful gold tassel-type trim and decided it would make perfect Alice hair. It kind of hangs in her eyes as her head tilts quizzically.

The silhouette of the rabbit is painted on her, surrounded by little watch parts.

The little wooden house with a porch was built by my husband.

She's listed and available for sale in my Etsy shop. 

And I must brag just a little bit -- the main reason I didn't finish my Wonderland doll in time was that I was trying to get the Art Dolls website up and running!  It was launched yesterday, and ADO members are now adding their info so that it will be a great resource for the group and for art doll aficionados everywhere.

Wonderland Challenge - in progress

Well, I'm supposed to be finished with my Wonderland doll today. But for various reasons (one of which is that I've been obsessively working on the brand new and fabulous Art Dolls Only web site), she's not done yet. But she's a work in progress. 

 Remember when Alice grew and grew inside the house and almost popped through -- well, what if she had actually popped through the roof?  Here's a drawing I made on a paper tablecloth at a pizza parlor the other day. (This gives you an idea of how pressed for time I can be.)  My daughter thought she should have a feather in her hair - don't know if that will make it to the actual piece. 

The Alice in Wonderland theme seemed to fit in well with my House Doll concept, so I'm making one of those. She'll be somewhat similar to my last House Doll. 

Here is how the piece looked earlier. I've done more sculpting since then. And I hope to have her done very soon - so please check back.

Last year's challenge was my introduction to the Art Dolls Only group and the realization that there were a wonderful group of artists out there that had some of the same interests that I do. Since then, I joined the group and have made more dolls (though not quite as many as I would like to).

Please visit the Art Dolls Only blog for a list of the other participants in this challenge!

OFFCenter Houses

As promised, here are some photos from the Albuquirky House Tour and Fundraiser organized by OFFCenter!

My "House Doll" sitting on the edge of a table. 

A "Cat House" by Jan Jackson. 

A piece by Frederico Vigil. He's working on the fresco inside the Torreon at the National Hispanic Cultural Center.

Another view of Frederico Vigil's house.

Black house is by Angus McPherson. 

Bird house on a spring by Ilene Weiss! 

Mod house by Roy Johnson in the foreground.

Views through the gallery. Recognize anyone?

House Doll

My House Doll has been finished and delivered to OFFCenter Community Arts Project for their fundraiser! They're a community artmaking place, and open their doors to anyone who wants to come make art.

Their fundraiser is in conjunction with their Albuquirky House Tour where people can tour several local art houses and folk art collections. The tour was recently featured on a local TV station, and includes the famous tile house, completed by ceramic artist Beverley Magennis. From their web site: "the Tile House has over 130,000 pieces of tile covering all 4 exterior walls, plus  the patio, sidewalks, and the entire living quarters inside, which is embellished with bottle caps, pennies, matchsticks, golf balls and much more."

Back to my doll - the call was to make a piece of art out of a little house. I decided to make a House Doll - the opposite of a doll house. I was given a little wooden house, and my husband built a little porch on it. I added her paperclay sculpted head and stuffed cloth arms, and legs, and painted all with acrylics. 

I forgot to measure her, but I imagine she's around 16 inches tall if standing. She's got hair made of burlap strands, and a blackbird painted on her neck.

She was great fun to make, and I can't wait to start another house doll! Just have to talk my husband into making me some more little houses...

 

If anyone's interested in bidding on her, it's a silent auction at OFFCenter near downtown Albuquerque on Saturday, May 1 from 1-4pm. Don't know if they'll take phone or email bids, but I can ask if anyone's curious! Bidding starts low....