Kids love dolls and at times this fascination follows one into adulthood. Until, a few years ago, it was only Barbie dolls and Disney characters dominating the scene, but slowly and steadily things are changing. Artistes are now putting more thought into their creations following the debate about what kind of message princess dolls send out to little girls. And in a way, it’s helping children grow up with a healthier attitude towards life. No parent would wan’t their daughters to only look pretty and wait patiently for Prince Charming to come visiting or look a certain way with unrealistic body proportions.
Carrying the same thought forward, this Italian artist Dito Von Tease – who keeps his real identity hidden – started making IDollz. A combination between the words ‘idol’ and ‘doll’, in this art project, Tease explores the meaning of contemporary simulacrum. The characters are inspired from news, historical events, arts, politics and so on. The artiste describes it as, “A series of portraits of contemporary pop idols represented as dolls. It is a potentially infinite ‘variations on a theme’ as Ditology and Ditalians”.
In a Bored Panda post, the artist writes, “The representation of celebrities as dolls reveals the mystery of their power: their magnificence does not belong to them, but it depends on people and their investiture, belief and confidence.”
From Nobel laureates and politicians like Dalai Lama and Barack Obama to singer and artistes like Charlie Chaplin, Elvis Presley and Frida Kahlo, Tease has a range of dolls to be inspired from.
Efforts in the past
Last year, Vancouver-based artist Wendy Tsao, won many little hearts – much to the relief of the parents – when her company, Child’s Own Studio started giving Bratz dolls a feminist makeover. Called the Mighty Dolls, Tsao transformed the dolls into iconic characters like Malala Yousafzai, J K Rowling, Jane Goodall – girls who grew up to be powerful and inspiring role models. Before Tsao, another artist Sonia Singh, showed the world how dolls would actually look like without make-up and fashionable clothes, making it apt for a child. Her project called the ‘tree-change’ instantly created a wave of change.
The latest addition to the world of realistic dolls is none other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Soft toy company Tickles is out with cuddly Namo dolls – around 40cm, dressed characteristically in an orange kurta, white pyjamas and white jacket.
Here are some of the dolls from his inspirational collection:
Albert Einstein for all those who dream big about changing the world with science
This version of US President Barack Obama is by far his cutest version
From all those enthusiastic lot in history and culture there is Queen Elizabeth II, who recently celebrated her 90th birthday
Marilyn Monroe’s doll version is just utterly cute!
When talking about pop icons, who would miss out on Presley!
Artists all over the world seem to never have too much of iconic Frida Kahlo
Even Dalai Lama would fall in love with his mini version
Pope Francis’ mini version will melt anyone’s heart
What do you think about these dolls, let us know in the comments below.