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Monday, July 22, 2013

Introducing Alice



Made especially for Alice in Australia


Introducing Alice - I think my favourite of all the dolls I've painted so far - but Alice is also special for another reason - she is the first doll I've made for a real person.

Agman (Terence) at Aviator always leaves such nice comments for me whenever I post paper dolls and tells me how much his granddaughter Alice likes them - so I decided the next doll I made would be especially for her.  Alice I hope you like your namesake (Granddad as you probably already know has a full size scan of the doll for you).

I also sent a scan of Alice to OPDAG (the Original Paper Doll Artist Guild).  I knew that the doll did not qualify for any of their upcoming themes but Jenny from OPDAG has offered to include her in the Showcase section of the Studio magazine with a link back to this post - so that is quite an exciting prospect as well.
 

  
Alice - Original Sketch


 Alice is a companion doll for Clarissa and the second in a series of dolls I'm making based on the beautiful artwork of Janet and Anne Grahame Johnstone.  I've wanted to try my hand at making dolls in slightly more unusual poses for ages and so a young girl sitting playing not only gave me a subject that was interesting to paint, it also meant I could fit three dresses onto a single page.

I based the doll on this illustration of Curly Locks taken from 'A Gift Book of Nursery Rhymes' - one of the loveliest figures in the book.   



 
Although I included the blue dress she is wearing as a separate outfit, designing the other dresses allowed me to play around with different fabric techniques.  As much as they are inspired by Janet and Anne Grahame Johnstone they also owe a huge debt to artists such as Ron Embleton and Jose Ortiz who feature regularly in my blog and whose work I've tried to emulate since childhood.

The most fun I had while making this doll was thinking up different objects for her to hold.  Part of the challenge of course was fitting the object to the shape!





It was very rewarding making and dedicating a doll in this way so I think it will be nice to continue the idea with the next doll in the series (I don't know how soon that is likely to be as I've had the advantage of being on holiday for the last week - giving me lots of lovely time to indulge in the things I enjoy!)

However - if anyone reading this would like me to dedicate a doll to a special little girl, let me know by leaving a comment (and obviously her name) at the end of this post.  




10 comments:

Barbara said...

Sharon this is such a lovely idea. I‘m sure Agman and Alice will be delighted. You have perfectly captured the ‘look’ of Janet and Anne Grahame Johnstone in these beautiful drawings.
Well done on getting into the Studio Magazine, how exciting! Is it an online magazine? If it is maybe you could include a link in a future post.

Unknown said...

I am going sailing this week end, but I just wanted to take this moment to say, delighted yes? thrilled really! on behalf of myself and family thank you I'm sure Alice will also want to thank you after I turn up at her house with your lovely paper dolls ( Alice) under my arm as a surprise.
The Blue bell fairy will come and see what a lovely thing you did for me, and rain happiness down on thee, Gone sailing.TD

CraveCute said...

Oh this is the sweetest thing ever! You have done a remarkable job on this darling paper doll. What a thrill it will be for the real "Alice"! I wanted to tell you I adore your pink roses in the previous post too!

GardenOfDaisies said...

Wonderful! I'm sure little Alice is delighted!

Darlene said...

How delightful I'm sure the young girl in Australia will love them. How talented you are and how very thoughtful.

DeadSpiderEye said...

Very interesting post Sharon, you have captured a wide variety of texture in your choice of fabrics. I especially like the delicate rendering of the quilted pattern and your line work of the outline. The works of Embleton and Ortiz certainly set high benchmarks for rendering fabrics, not least because they both exhibit a mastery of a wide range of treatments and technique. I think a you're doing a good job emulating them and it would be great to see you continue in this vein.

Nora said...

Sharon,
Such a lovely doll and idea. Wish I had a daughter or granddaughter who loved paper dolls. :)

Unknown said...

Oh my, Sharon, how kind of you! I'm sure Alice will love this. And who doesn't like Terence? One of my favorite online friends.

Yurika said...

Dear Mr. Sharon Souter,


It's nice to meet you.
My name is Yurika Deno. I live in Japan.
While I was looking for the picture of "Ida Rentoul Outhwaite", I found your wonderful website.
I'm very glad to know such a wonderful site.
Since I'd like study English, your article give many kinds of tips for me, too :D


Anyway thank you so much,
Sincerely yours,
-----
Yurika Deno (Ms.)

DMS said...

I love this post! How wonderful that you made a doll for Agman's granddaughter, Alice. She must be over the moon excited. And Alice is so beautiful! I love the different dresses and objects. What a special thing you did- just wonderful!

~Jess

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