Twilight Promenade 2004 Kato Polyclay. Creative Doll Artist Club dollar store challenge. Everything used to dress the figures was altered from purchases at the dollar store. I made the base and full body sculpts.

Making dolls has been a passion all my adult life. I find figurative art to be powerful and magical. It is a journey that I continue to learn from and develop.

Growing up the middle of five children in Thunder Bay, Ontario, I didn’t play with dolls much, but I was always making things. I would go for sleepovers at my Nanny and Grandpa’s, and pack my child size suitcase full of my art supplies. They would tease me and say, “It’s too quiet here, we must have forgot Debbie.” I would be off in some corner busy drawing, with my suitcase open in front of me. My skilled and patient mother started to teach me how to sew when I was 12 years old.

The doll world first grabbed my attention with a visit to an antique doll show. I was in awe to discover one could make these rare beauties. This was back in 1980 while I was a fashion design student at Ryerson University in Toronto. The week I graduated I signed up for lessons to make reproduction porcelain dolls. The dolls won ribbons, were given away as gifts, and were sold. I would stare at these porcelain dolls and think that I could never sculpt something as good. But eventually I was ready to move on. I thought even if the result was not as good, it would be much more satisfying if the creation was all mine.

Meanwhile with the birth of my son Devin, and then twins Chad and Naomi, my focus shifted to my children for several years.

By 1993 I was finally ready to try my hand at sculpting. I signed up for a three-day sculpting seminar. I bubbled over with excitement at learning the technique. Every afternoon when the twins napped, I would run down to my workroom and sculpt for two hours.

After being trained in porcelain reproductions I found it difficult to let loose with one of a kind dolls. I remember saying “What do you mean, the clothes don’t come off?” There were no rules to follow with original dolls. This newfound freedom was intimidating but also very exciting.

With my first realistic sculptures I knew my facial proportions weren’t right but I didn’t have the experience to identify the problem. I would ask my husband to be honest and critic them. When he would gently suggest something: like the chin was too narrow or the nose too long. I would be mildly annoyed and then go rework it. I learned early on, to fix what bothered me even if it was tedious, because otherwise I would always notice it.

Haunted 1996 Cernit. She has tears streaming down her face. When I showed her at the Kent Farndale Gallery Oct 1996 she evoked quite a bit of emotion from people. One guy said “That’s my grandmother!” another said “she lost all her potato crop and doesn’t know how they will survive the winter”, another said “She’s wearing a ring so she must of just lost her husband” another said “I wouldn’t want her in my house, she is too sad, I like happy things.” I found it interesting how they felt like they had to explain her situation.

Ludella - is the second doll I ever sculpted. Since I made her in October 1993 I thought it would be fitting to do a witch. She is sculpted from Cernit. Ludella is happy and dancing. And yes Ludella’s clothes come off (re: article). I still was in transition from my porcelain doll days and my early original dolls reflect this.

Crispo 1997, sculpted out of Cernit and then painted. My jack in the boxes and full-figure jesters were featured in a show at The Guild Shop in Toronto the summer of 1997.

Untitled Stoneware Face, Aug 2006. A face sculpted from stoneware clay that I fired in my kiln. It is meant to hang on the wall (over a door). I just made it in August 06. It is approximately 6”long. I gave it to my nephew as part of his wedding present this Sept.06 It is untitled.

Funny thing is, the fashion world of people never appealed to me, but the world of doll art is something else entirely. I make dolls to satisfy an inner need. A lifetime of creative pursuits works together in my figurative art. I can’t think of anywhere else that I’d rather use my sculpting, design, embroidery, beading, quilting, drawing, painting and colour training skills.

When making a figure I start with an idea, but as I work it usually changes and evolves. I never think about the dolls when I’m not working on them. The tactile process in my workroom starts things rolling. Yet, I will often use avoidance techniques before starting. I will clean up my workroom, clean out a closet, run errands, or check email. Starting a new project is always the hardest step for me. Once I have begun and I like the way things are shaping up, I don’t seem to notice what goes on around me or care about the mess. When I’m “in the zone” and highly inspired, my small workroom will look like a creative whirlwind has hit. I’ll have reference photos and papers pinned up, body parts started, and fabrics piled high until final choices are made. Then I’ll shove over the fabrics to do some painting, then shove that over to start the beading, then find some floor space to dump out the buttons. Body parts will be propped up “watching”, and CBC radio is always on to keep me company. It’s a very happy place to be.

Jelly James - 1997 Painted Cernit

Patience My Little Friend 1996 Cernit

Whispers of The Forest 2003 painted Super Sculpey

A Walk Through Life

Guardian Angels

I am not a collector of dolls, and have no qualms about selling my work. It is the process that is so exhilarating. My treasures are all my beads, buttons, trinkets, trims, fabrics, paints and paper. The supply is vast and crowding our family basement. When I asked my husband, “What will you do with my supplies when I die?” He jokingly answered, “I will sell them at a yard sale,” much to my horror!

	jester pin dolls

I am comfortable using a variety of techniques to make my realistic or whimsical figures. Depending on my vision I work with several different polymer clays, air-drying clay, cloth, or I carve antler or use found objects. Recently I’ve been excited to explore sculpting with stoneware clay, and firing it in my kiln, which has sat idle since my porcelain doll days.

It is a bonus to know my work is loved in it’s new home. My second attempt at an original doll was a witch I named, “Ludella” (Oct. 1993). When I put the doll’s muslin on for a fitting I gasped and said, “It’s alive!” Upon taking Ludella to a show, she sold within five minutes of opening. The woman who owns Ludella says, “It’s the best gift I have ever been given.” She has instructed everyone if there is a fire, they are to rescue Ludella first — then the pets!

As a member of the CDAA I served two years (2005 and 2006) on the Executive as Treasurer. This experience gave me a fascinating insight into how an organization like this is run. It has also been an honour to judge at conference competitions, and see the diverse styles of this talented and dynamic group of doll artists.

My work has sold in Canada, the USA and England, and appeared in Art Doll Quarterly. My “Nick Knox, The Jack-In-The-Box” was on display for three years at the Canadian Museum of Civilization (until Oct 2003) for their show “Timeless Treasures: The Story of Dolls in Canada.” I live in Seagrave, Ontario with my husband and three children. This gentle country setting with a river nearby suits me just fine.

Deborah Colston

*You can view Deborah’s work online at www.scugog-net.com/colston/