Reborn Hobby Comprehension: Venting

 

Reborn dolls are a literal art form. (Credit: "Princess Ariel" by CamellynCreations)

They Are Art!!

 

    The only part of a Reborn doll that may be mass produced is the vinyl or silicone blank kit and the materials used to make it. The rest is some individual artist's vision, skill level and imagination. My apologies in advance to my readers but I have just had a rough morning at home that has fueled me to make this vent-post. As you all know, I have around eight or nine Reborn dolls (soon to be nine or ten) and I am extremely careful about what and who they come into contact with because I know their art can sometimes be a bit fragile and difficult to repair or replicate, even by the original artist that put them together. So I feel I need to make this post that dives into a little more detail, explaining what makes a true Reborn doll a literal, one of a kind art doll. First, there is the blank kit that serves as a doll's base. 

 

If you do not feel like reading my rant, skip to the bottom of this post to view a video of an artist assembling a Reborn baby doll. It will show you exactly why, without words, these dolls are art pieces.

 

 

A vinyl blank Lizzy kit by Adrie Stoete.

 

    These are unpainted, plain, plastic sculpts usually cast in a vinyl or silicone that is already mimicking a skin tone. They are created from the mold created on an individual sculptor's work that is based on the appearances of real babies, usually. The exception to that realism rule are the sculpts made to look like, say, vampires or pixies. The sculptor makes this sculpt out of clay with their own hands, tools and imagination or possibly 3D models it. Either way, it is an artist's own work. Then, the finished sculpt is cast into a mold, which is then sent to a manufacturer for use in creating and selling multiples of the blank kit and these are usually limited in some number, even when not specifically numbered. So the kit is both an art piece and a bit mass produced in some degree and it is not the only thing if we are being completely honest here. 

 

My newest addition, little Kathleen Harvey from Casper, based on the Evelyn kit by Bountiful Baby and customized for me by Rhonda's Reborns.

 

 

    Another mass produced set of items that goes into the creation of a Reborn doll are the paints, the varnish, the stuffing and the weighted beads. You can find heat set paints, heat set varnish, air dry paints, air dry varnish, pencils, cloth bodies, cotton stuffing, solvent, paintbrushes, sponges and weighted beads at most crafting stores. These are used by artists to create the lifelike appearance and feel (in your arms) of a true Reborn doll. They are not individually made and at least that can be said of the sculpt that produced the blank kits. However, how they are used is what makes the end result an individual work of art that will not be replicated by a factory. So they are nonetheless just as important as the kit. Zip ties are also used on vinyl Reborn dolls to hold their heads and limbs on their cloth bodies. These ties are also mass produced little pieces of plastic and they do not affect the look of the doll, they just help to ensure safety. So, important, but in a different way. 

 

 

If the hair is not painted or drawn and is instead rooted, Reborn doll artists use special tools and glue to insert real mohair into the doll's head.

 

 

    This is another part, like the kit itself, that is both individual and yet mass produced at the same time. It is difficult to find two Angora goats who can produce the exact same shade of the exact same color of hair at times. The preservation and preparation of the hair is also often an individualized process deciphered and performed by the person who owns the goat(s) in question. But the possibility is still there to find others selling a similar color or the exact same shade to another, which is why I say this part is also a bit mass produced. Individual doll artists may also further individualize the hair via giving their dolls hairstyles or haircuts or by adding dye to the hair themselves. So again, another part of the dolls that is both individualistic and mass produced, depending on how you view it. 

 

Realistic resin doll eyes sold on Go Baby. 

 

 

 

    Then, there are the eyes for kits whose eyes are open. Sometimes, these are resin, sometimes these are glass. Some eyes are handmade by individual artists and some are mass produced. It just depends on the artist's preference or the request of the customer purchasing a custom doll which kind of eyes are used. For example, when I was asked what kind of eyes I wanted to be used for both Cain and Christopher by CamellynCreations, I had done some of my research and specifically requested German glass eyes wherever possible for the level of realism I knew they would bring to my custom littles. So I did opt for mass produced eyes instead of artist made ones, with the exception of Christopher's gold eye, which was likely custom made by an artist.

 

Cain is on the left, Christopher is on the right.

 

 

    So far, we have gone over the parts of a Reborn doll that are mass produced or can be artist made- the blank kit, the eyes, the hair. We have also gone over parts of the dolls which are likely mass-produced- cloth body, zip ties, paints, etc. If there are parts that are mass produced and parts that are artist made, why, then, do we so fiercely make the argument that our dolls are individual works of art and not mass produced? Well, the simple answer is... the doll artists themselves. Just because the materials may be mass produced does not mean that a person's ideas, their imagination, their skill level or their effort is. What makes a Reborn doll an artist made doll and not some mass produced item is not the materials, it is the hours upon hours that someone spent on painting them, mapping their hair, rooting their hair and styling their hair. It is the creative vision that really makes these dolls something that is not easily reproduced or widely sold. 

 

If this post was much too long for you, at least check out this video.

 

 

    I can only hope that reading this post or watching the video on this page helps at least a few people to realize that though the parts might be manufactured in some degree, the fully assembled dolls themselves are not. The reason that I chose to write this post is because this morning, I had a family incident occur in which my dolls were compared to the kitchen refrigerator in terms of mass production. It really stung me deep, because I was there at the store when we purchased that fridge, so I know for a fact that it was mass produced, unlike my dolls. I mean, I can actually name multiple different artists that created the dolls that I currently own. The same cannot be done for the refrigerator and therein lies the difference that my family was overlooking. It does get tiresome too that they so often view my dolls not as art pieces but as mere toys. Despite all of the research I have done, the tips and stories I have heard from other collectors, the advice I have been given from the artists on caring for my dolls, my family continues to tell me that I am crazy, delusional, lying, etc. It has even come to a point at which I do not even allow close family near my dolls easily. I feel I do not have the grounds to be able to trust them with my babies. However, maybe that will eventually change. Maybe. I do have one odd memory in which my mother got to hold one of my littles briefly while helping me out of a car and the way her expression changed when she felt the weight of the doll in her arms told me she might eventually come to understand more if I gave her a bit more of a chance. Possibly. I will have to work on this and keep you all posted. I sincerely wish my family understood more on this hobby and perhaps there is a way to make that happen.