Twisted Passions - Twisted Art: September 2018

Creating Beauty

As a child, I was frightened by a humongous Kissy doll. At 3, it was as big as I was and when you pulled it's hands together it made a smacking or a supposed kissing sound. I was sure it would get up and get me......making smacking sounds as it neared my bed.

Now I make dolls.....some are supposed to be scary, but most just reflect how I look at beauty. To me we have a very narrow view of what beauty is and is not. I have cerebral palsy and don't think I'm whining about it I'm not. I'm lucky my case is very mild compared to some people's. But you can pick me out as different, I walk awkwardly, but my arm and leg work correctly.....for someone with a partially paralyzed arm and leg.

I look like someone with CP is supposed to and in my way I'm attractive. I try to reflect alternative beauty in the dolls I create and so in some ways I'm still dealing with fear, but now it's not my own.

Monday, September 17, 2018

Spring Mourning Or the process of creating a series

This single black and white photo is the inspiration for the sad little picturebook Spring Mourning for which I have been gathering reference for several months. I want to tell the story in a series of paintings with bunny people in 18th and early Regency style clothing. The story takes place over a period of a few years.

The reference I’m finding helpful are late 18th and early 19th century miniatures, and even historical costume catalogs helpful in deciding on how I want the characters
People in rabbit masks and flower symbology charts also help set the mood.

I think my first experiment designing a rabbit woman and her baby turned out rather well. Although I’m still undecided about putting hairdos of any kind on the women rabbits. I like the idea of just arranging a few flowers around their ears.