Monthly Archives: July 2015

Commission of Commissions

A Couple of Commissions

This week is all about two art doll commissions.  One I’ve just completed, and the other went to its new home. Last week I teased you with some images of parts and pieces of my completed motorcycle art doll sculpture.  That piece is now titled “Steampunk Riders” by its owners, and it left the gallery yesterday,  so I can share an image without ruining any surprises.  I received a nice email of how wonderfully they were received.

completed commission sculpture of art dolls on motorcycle

Steampunk Riders

This was a challenging piece with lots of metal work detail and hand stitching on their clothes, and a complete blast to create. I like the movement and gesture in the final composition. It is such a good feeling to have a piece go where you know it is truly loved, and ties to something else that the owners enjoy and share.

Art Doll with a Book Leads to Another…

I first created a seated art doll writing in a journal that was inspired by a family member who was an accomplished author.  That seated figure lead to a similar seated figure reading a book commissioned by a friend.  The reader figure inspired me to create a doll lying on the floor reading as a child would.  One of my artist friends spied that sculpture prior to its sale, and decided that she needed a similar piece of her very own.  This now fourth in my series of literary art dolls is the second commission I completed this week.

reclining art doll figure with book

Reader commission art doll

It is curious how one inspiration leads to another.  In this case, I myself saw one person in a piece I created, and others saw a bit of themselves.  In this case a love of books tied all these art dolls and their eventual owners to one another.

Summer Break Over, Back to Motorcycle

Ok, so summer is obviously not over, but it is time for me to get back to work creating new work, and getting some regular blog posts up here for you to see.

Since I’ve returned from a bit of travel, I have had the chance to finish up the motorcycle commission I had been working on.  That piece happens to be a surprise from one person to another.  On the very, very off chance that the recipient would be among the dozen or so individuals that actually read my postings here… I’m going to hold off posting any full photos of that completed piece and just tease with some detail shots of bits and pieces until the sculpture is delivered. However, if you happen to be a Facebook friend, Instagram follower, or are part of any of the art doll groups I’m a member of, then you may catch a glimpse of the fully completed sculpture.

Close up of front of art doll motorcycle

detail front

Here you can see two pairs of motorcycle boots,  the glass gem headlamp, and other parts of the bike’s front.

detail of the passenger doll's bag

Passenger’s messenger bag

Lots and lots of little stitches on on the motorcycle seat, messenger bag, and passenger’s jeans.

close up of boots, and "motor"

close up of boots, and “motor”

Now, it’s off to the studio to start a couple of new pieces.  One of them is also a commission, but it is sort of a redo of an earlier piece, and definitely not as involved as this one. Not sure what I will share with you next week, I guess we’ll both have to wait and see.

It has been fun taking you “along for the ride” on a multiple piece commission.  As I stated before, they can be tricky for us artists generally used to creating exactly what we want when the inspiration strikes us.  It is gratifying to know that some patrons enjoy the work so much they want it used to capture something special to them personally.