Wednesday, June 25, 2008

My Latest Doll Creation!



This is the first doll I have done in a long time that I actually placed a face on it. I am a bit insecure when it comes to faces, but because this was a commissioned doll and I felt the client would prefer to have a face, I decided to do one. My husband actually liked the face. He prefers my dolls be faceless but I took a risk on this one. The doll is called "Wanda" for a particular reason. It was named by my husband who has reasons for everything!

Monday, June 23, 2008

Meeting Poncho Brown & Sharon Tucker in Philly!

Oh how I love art and music festivals! Especially in a city that definitely knows how to do it right- Philadelphia, PA. My love, my home, my city of brotherly and sisterly love! I had a great opportunity to visit my birthplace and attend the West Oak Art and Jazz Festival yesterday, June 22,2008. It was purely a blast. In full disclosure, I wanted to see in person, Sharon Tucker, one of the well known, African American doll artists on the east coast. Sharon was conducting a doll workshop there and I wanted to meet her and learn from her. Indeed I did. She was so open and willing to share which I believe is rare for African American doll artists and any profession to do for some reason. Giving back is of primary importance to Sharon who shared with me how frustrating it was when she started, 15 years ago, for others, particularly African American doll artists, to share with her various doll making techniques. Her workshop was to put together a doll. It was demonstration and lecture on the art of doll making and what is important to remember. My eyes were attentive and stayed placed on her as she took us through a quick run through of a doll making excercise. I was so amazed at her style and grace and that she "got real" with me and others she encountered. This personality sold me and in fact I purchased two of her dolls to take home with me.

I also met great artists Poncho Brown and Charles Bibbs while I was there. Both of these gentlemen were very down to earth. Poncho during his workshop preached about the need for all of us to look around our homes and see if we can identify any portion of our ancestry in it. He also talked about spending money on things that will appreciate like art and giving back to our community. Lastly, which I really liked, he showed his techniques and encouraged everyone to look at their creative side and find a way to cultivate it. I really enjoyed my Sunday afternoon in Philly! Peace to the artists who attended!

Sewall-Belmont Art Exhibition Reception, June 18th!




On Wedndesday, June 18th, the official reception took place for the Project 3: Empoerwered by Empowered Artistry which is an exhibition of a collaboration of arts organizations dedicated to social justice issues, making a difference, both locally and globally, through individual creativity and the fine arts. The venue, The Sewall-Belmont House and Museum is located in the heart of Capitol Hill in Washington, DC next to the Hart Denate Office Building. The exhibit features work from me which is a stamped doll that has been framed in a shadow box called Feminine Mystique.

Feminine Mystique
Artist Statement

This doll was created based upon the then controversial 1963 book of the same title by Betty Friedan which attacked the popular notion that women of that time could only find fulfillment through childbearing and homemaking.

The book argues that women are victims of a false belief system that requires them to find identity and meaning in their lives through their husbands and children. Such a system causes women to completely lose their identity in that of their family. I believe in many cases women today still fall victim by society to have a husband and children in order to be considered completely feminine.

This stamped doll describes the emotions and feelings of women today in relation to the various roles they play as business owner, wife, mother, daughter, sister, etc. It’s not easy to be all and still be yourself.

The doll is handmade- Pima Cloth doll, Dyed and stamped in Shadow box frame. If you are in the Washington, DC area, I invite you to stop by to see this striking piece of art.

Sunday, June 15, 2008

My Newest Doll Creations






Hey all, I am showing off the latest creations from Sankofa Doll Artistry. All of these dolls are spoken for. But I am excited about all of them. These photos are a testiment of the true nature and spirit of the dolls. I am proud of the growth that I am moving towards. Now I have to create more. What will the themes be? How much time I am going to spend on the next editions? Who knows but I have several shows coming up in the fall so I need to get crackin!

Saturday, June 7, 2008

H3 at MOCA Georgetown, June 6, 2008








On a humid and hot friday evening, I visited the MOCA Gallery in Georgetown, DC to take in the reception for H3: Remix of Herstory. I have two works there currently. They are the "Emancipation of Rachel Midnight" and "I am not My Hair", both mixed media pieces. The event was hosted by my twin sister, Sharon Burton of Authentic Art Consulting and Michelle Parrish of Thick Art. It was a wonderful evening full of wine and good conversation with some of the DC areas most talented women artists. It was my first time at MOCA DC and I really love the venue. This event has showcased my other art pieces which are not necessarily dolls. I am really enjoying my artist life. It is refreshing to hang out with some of my artist friends and being totally my artsy self!

Thursday, June 5, 2008

Sankofa Dolls Represented by Echo Gallery





Echo Gallery in Washington,DC is representing Sankofa Doll Artistry for the first time. Two of my dolls in the photos above are being sold through the gallery.
This is an exciting time for Sankofa Doll Artistry!

About Echo Gallery:

Looking for eye-popping, contemporary, multicultural art, with a concentration on Afro-centric motifs? Look no further than Echo Gallery, located near B. Smith's restaurant in Union Station in the heart of downtown Washington, DC.

Whether it is local talents or craftspeople you are looking for, Echo Gallery has it all. Leather works from Niger, batiks from Kenya, figurines from Jamaica, and jewelry from India, and that is just the tip of the mountain. Their myriad of collectibles and unmatched "one of a kind" innovations appeal to novices as well as experts in the art discipline. So, regardless of whether you want to peruse their works of art, or are interested in expanding your cultural horizons, Echo Gallery is the place to go!

We are so pleased that the Gallery is interested in our work and we will continue to supply them with the best in our doll artistry! Please support us through Echo Gallery!

For more information contact:
ECHO GALLERY
Union Station - East Hall
P.O. Box GE168
Washington, DC 20002
WWW.ECHOGALLERY.COM

SALES:
Tel. (800)950-3932
Tel. (202)842-8400
Fax (301)459-1811

How To Find The Best African American Reborn Dolls

In doing a search I found this interesting article which I am reprinting from Ray Baker's blog.


How To Find The Best African American Reborn Dolls -Article

* By Ray Baker

Ray Baker

My website was founded because of the lack of information and availability of ethnic Reborn Dolls. I started the site to help fellow reborn enthusiasts track down the best African American Reborn Dolls available on the Internet today.
View all articles by Ray Baker

Not everyone understands reborning, to the uninitiated it's a world of strange obsession, to the folks that do understand, it provides endless hours of irreplaceable pleasure. That pleasure is derived from beauty, artistry, and uniqueness of each doll, because just like human babies, reborn dolls come in every conceivable shape size and color - nowadays there are Caucasian, Asian, and African American Reborn Dolls.

The African American Reborn Dolls are particularly difficult to find, as the majority of artist that make the dolls concentrate on Caucasian babies. I started my website dedicated to finding new African American Reborn Dolls because even now, with the vast power of the Internet, African American Reborn Dolls are very difficult to track down as there are only a very limited number of artists who specialize in these African American Reborn Dolls.

Reborn dolls are exactly as they sound, they are dolls that have been stripped of their factory finishes and been "reborn" and transformed in to realistic looking babies. After having undergone a number of processes including repainting, re weighting, and the addition of realistic hair, special effects such as tears, a heartbeat, and tiny imperfections are created to make them appear even more lifelike. While this may not sound particularly difficult to do, it is a very challenging art form and the most respected artists can command several thousand Dollars for each doll.

Reborn doll artists use very careful processes to make an ordinary cloth and vinyl doll look
exactly like a real baby. The dolls are custom colored using multiple layers of specialist paints to give the 'babies' their skin tone to make them appear as closely related to their own ethnic groups as is possible, like the African American Reborn Dolls for example. Whilst all kinds of different dolls can be used to make reborns - these dolls are not made for play, they are collector dolls made to be cherished and admired.

The demand for the dolls at the high-end of the market is always extremely strong, but probably the fastest growing category is with the African American Reborn Dolls, albeit from a much smaller base. This is partly due to the fact there are fewer artist making African American Reborn Dolls, but also because the rarity makes them a very good investment - having said that, I must stress that the vast majority of collectors collect for the love of their hobby (many would never consider selling any of their dolls) and have little interest in making profits.

Collectors and enthusiasts from all over the world are constantly adding to their assortment of beautiful babies. The world of reborns is a friendly close-knit community and you will always find helpful and friendly advice - you'll just need to ask. I have been collecting unique dolls all my life, and I have always enjoyed artistic and creative pursuits, but when I first discovered reborn babies my passion was truly ignited. These delightful little babies are so beautiful which is testament in large part to the talented artists who share their art with the reborning community. You may have already guessed, that my particular passion at the moment are the African American Reborn Dolls.!


SOURCE : How To Find The Best African American Reborn Dolls -Article....

Project 3: Empowered by Artistry


Sankofa Doll Artistry will be participating in:

Project 3: Empowered by Artistry
Sewall- Belmont House and Museum
144 Constitution Avenue, NE
Washington, DC 20002-5608
Open for tours Tuesday to Saturday
Cost: FREE

Opening Reception: Wednesday, June 18, 2008
6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

Exhibition Dates: June 11, 2008 - Aug 30, 2008

Co-Sponsored by Art for Global Development, Authentic Art Consulting, Girls Gotta Run Foundation, and The ThickArt Collaborative
Project 3: Empowered by Artistry a collaborative effort of three initiatives including the Making Herstory Series under the title "La Femme: The Feminine"La Femme: The feminine is an exhibition featuring women artists from the DC Metropolitan area and an extension of the Making Herstory exhibition series sponsored by AAC and ThickArt.

In addition, this special exhibition of women artists is a part of a larger exhibition featuring artwork of women from two additional organizations including the Girls Gotta Run Foundation and Art for Global Development (Treasure Postcards). Artwork selected for La Femme portion of the exhibition is based on the theme of the power and softness of women.

Artists selected for the exhibition include:

Prudence Bonds
Audrey Brown
Tess Chatfield
Zandra Chestnut
Ann Marie Coolick
Danielle Eure
Magaly Garza
Pam Hilliard
Kim Iles
Cynthia Johnson
Nihal Kecceci
Tina Lassiter
Sonya Lawyer
Heather Levy
Kiki Mcgrath
Bryanna Millis
Hester Ohbi
Patricia Ortman
Zenobia Rickford
Yelena Rodina
Heather Schmaedeke
Patricia Steck
Sherry Ways

H3: The REMIX

Sankofa Doll Artistry will be participating in:

MOCA DC Canal Square, Georgetown
1054 31st St NW # 9
Washington, DC 20007

Opening Reception: Friday, June 6, 2008, 6 pm - 9 pm

Co-sponsored by Authentic Art Consulting and The ThickArt Collaborative. Join us as we bring Making Herstory 3: Connected Sisterhood, an art exhibit celebrating the visual art of women in the DC/MD/VA area to Washington .

Special Note: Authentic Art Consulting and The ThickArt Collaborative have joined Design Scheme Interiors, LLC, Unity Health Care, Inc., The Ward 7 Arts Collaborative, and the Decorators' Alliance of North America (DANA) to help brighten the lives of residents East of the River in Washington, DC through Unity Health Care's East of the River Key Corner Project.

AAC and TAC will be requesting artists and guests to bring to the reception donated books, school supplies and art supplies for children ages 2-10 to contribute to a new children's reading corner and patient waiting room at Unity's East of the River Health Center.

The community served by Unity's East of the River Health Center is tremendously challenged with the issues of poverty, homelessness, lack of education, unemployment, substance abuse, poor education and HIV infection rates that are 12 times that of the national average. For information about the project, click here

Participating Artists:

Wanda Aikens (DC)
Prudence Bonds (DC)
Sharon J. Burton (Maryland)
Zandra Chestnut (DC)
Magaly Garza
Marilyn Hayes (Virginia)
Cynthia Johnson (Maryland)
Jennifer Judelsohn (Virginia)
Nihal Kececi (Maryland)
Sharon Keyser (Maryland)
Elva Lovaz (DC)
Bryanna Millis (DC)
Patricia E. Ortman (DC)
Michelle d. Parrish (DC)
Marina Reiter (DC)
Kerry Richardson (DC)
Anike Robinson (MD)
Heather Schmaedeke (Maryland)
Patricia Steck (Maryland)
Desiree Sterbini (Maryland)
Sherry B. Ways (DC)