Creepy dolls..

So I thought it might be interesting to do a series of illustrations based on the construction of the doll, and all the various parts that go into making one. If we’re using the doll as a visual metaphor for physical female perfection (and mental, for that matter – in as far as vapidness coincides with the ideal), then the doll’s components could be seen as sort of blueprints for perfection.

Unfortunately, it just seems to be looking really creepy.

This was the first one I drew, based, again, on the build structure of ball joint dolls. An idea sketch more than anything. As with my previous doll drawing, I wanted to try to incorporate the organic with the apparently plastic, and then this monstrosity was born.

GET AWAY, HANS BELLMER… GET AWAY!

Finally, there’s this one, who looks absolutely ridiculously proportioned.. I think I should note that this is pretty much just an outline of one of the dolls in a photo I found. So: the insane anatomy is not my doing, they actually just make these things this way.

So. Yeah. No more of that.

It doesn’t say the right things. The lack of a head/face only invites the male gaze, but there’s not enough outright criticism of it. It might be the fact that I’m using torsos, which makes the lack of a head all the more obvious… as the two are generally attached.

So.. body parts are really interesting to draw, but they aren’t the right choice for this project.

Edit: Reading back over this gave me the idea of intentionally having the figures that I draw making eye contact with the camera.. as an acknowledgement of their being watched?