This week, I would like to introduce an artist who inspires me a
lot. Her name is Marina
Bychkova, a Russian-Canadian figurative artist, and a founder of Enchanted Doll. She creates exquisite and pretty porcelain dolls.
I have came across her works about two years after creating my
own characters. And I've loved her works from first sight.
May be it was easy to love, because I found similarities in
style of my girls' facial expressions and her dolls. Somehow I feel
there's a connection between our works. And I've been following her works
on doll creation for some time.
When you give some attention to her dolls' faces, you will see
the face full of emotions. Sometimes painted with sadness, shyness,
insecurities, worries or expectations. But I doubt if she add these
feelings with purpose, rather all her dolls' faces appear to be full of those
feelings naturally and effortlessly. I have to admit I don't know the
life story of her but I am sure that she's a successful doll maker and that
she's passionate about what she does.
Her dolls are elegantly sculpted and articulated works of art. Strikingly nude,
engraved or adorned in opulent sculptural costumes of precious metals,
gemstones, and rare found objects, each doll intricately conveys an aspect of
our humanity.
She said “The reason I love making dolls is because it’s such a multidisciplinary art form. I’m not content working in just one medium such as painting or sculpture, and dolls offer me a very diverse and satisfying tactile experience. To create a doll I get to do it all: sculpture, industrial design, painting, engraving, mold-making, drawing, metalwork, fashion and jewelry design. I want it all, or nothing!”
- Marina Bychkova
The doll faces are done in detail with fine touches. You
can see her step by step approach from her website. Let's have a deeper
look into how she creates her doll faces.
Look at how the eyes are made. They look sparkling and so
alive, filled with so much emotion. The eyes are very detailed too.
The lips are full and shiny. Not like having lipstick on
but more of a natural shine.
Choice of skin tons are another favourite. Very crafty I
have to admit. The colours she chose are dynamic, with the cheeks looking more
reddish giving out a soft and gentle outlook for the doll she made.
I like that so much that I created an artwork myself taking
inspiration from her. Have a look the right picture. >>>
The choice of skin tone plays an important role if you want to
express a lot of emotions.
Even if the differences can't be seen easily between different
expressions, you can notice the differences in feelings from the faces even
when they are under the same theme.
The takeaway here is to practice again and again so that the
moves become natural. Now you can see how I take inspiration from other
artists and how I infuse it into my own works. You can see more of her
beautiful dolls from this link.
The more creative ideas you have on how to create a face, your
inner mind will definitely help bring you there. The more details you can
do, the more lively face you will create.
