All Zhenne & Everything

Belle et Bete...

I love creating magical mystical surrealfairytale-looking imagery deriving from photos of dolls that I have made...for this I composed and superimposed different aspects of four of my original Fashion/Costume dolls - "Sweet French Clothilde", "Spanish Romantic Violinist", "Parisian Lady in an Antique Lace Dress" and "Pirate Tess". 

La Belle Damoiselle d'Oiseaux, An Eccentric Fashion Costume Doll

This is one of the original cloth Fashion/Costume Dolls I love to create.  I originated the pattern for this doll in 1987 and have used it as the foundation for many interpretations...my theme for this one is the exotic plumage of Birds of Paradise and pretending that I am a fashion designer inspired by such.  I completed this doll in 2007 and she now resides in a private collection.

La Belle Damoiselle d'Oiseaux, A Closer Look...

Her wired spectacles have glass tiger-striped lenses...and her faux-fur feathery headgear attaches magnetically...her shantung jacket zips and unzips.  She stands about 24" tall.

Keeper of the Bees

From things bird to things bee -

aviary to apiary!

I have created eight beekeeper dolls to date - each is unique - but of the same order.  The Order of Loyal Keepers of the Bee.  Something much needed.  This is one I made about 1998...the most recent Beekeeper doll I made this year as a commissioned piece for an actual beekeeper.  I will post pictures of it soon.  The Beekeepers stand about 8" tall, and the netted hats are removeable and reveal that the head is somewhat like a hive.

OOAK Pirate Figure Doll

This is Rose, La Belle Fleurette - an elegant Creole lady...she is not really a pirate, just dressed up as a pirate woman for the Costume Ball.  I created her in 1994 and she resides in a private collection.  She is a cloth doll which I made from my original pattern, and she is one-of-a-kind. 

Fleecy Winter Deer Coatdress and Hat

In December of 2003, I was inspired by a deerprint panel of fleece to make this winter coatdress and hat...in this picture, it is being worn backwards.

"The Loyal Order of Keepers of the BEE"

This is the Seventh of Eight so far...entrusted specifically to overseeing the well-being of the Honeybee beings...

To see other dolls in this series, please select "ALL Things BEE" category to the right.  I will update this post with more text soon...

Doll Artistry Magazine: Zhenne Wood, May 1992

 

Over a Thousand Things and Counting...

I have been creating original, unusual & one-of-a-kind dolls and other inscrutable objects with a devoted passion concertedly since New Year's Day of 1986.  I have been going through my photo files and posting them in Cyberspace - just great!  So fun!  So, I have made over a thousand things which are each signed and dated which have made their homes in private collections around the world.  It hasn't been and is not as easy as one might think to live the life of an artist...I have very little choice in the matter...I have to do what I am lead to do.  I get these ideas and inspirations and have to make them tangible.  It is a celebration of Art & Love & Life and through it all, I feel so fortunate and grateful for it ALL and so much! 

So now, I'll post some pix to kick off this post.

This one I call "The Gatherer" - I have also made a "Gatherer Woman" and a "Grampus Gatherer".  To tell the truth, I forget exactly what year I completed this doll.  My best guess is 1994.  A man bought him as a birthday gift to himself.  I took these photos a few years later.  I made a little shoulderstrap nest to gather things in...the feathers in the nest are things the man added to the nest over that time.  The Gatherer is chewing on a twig, with an owl on his shoulder, and a sunshade made from aboriginal rootpaper on a big thorn armature coming out of a small nest hat.  He is pretty much good to go on a walkabout.

"Cloth Cat Doll in Chinoise Chic Ensemble"

 This is Manu, a fashionable little cat doll.  A lovely lady asked me if I would make a simple little cat doll that looks like her sweet cat, Manu, even with a little notch in her ear.  She wanted to be able to take the doll with her on trips to Paris. The face and body of the doll started out as heavy white satin which I painted black, leaving white areas for the paws, face, and body.  I then embroidered white stitches on top of the white areas.  The nose and eyes are also embroidered.  All of the garments are removable and can be worn in different ways.

Since Manu, the cat doll will be making trips to Paris, I thought it would be nice to create a kind of cat couture look for her. The skirt of the dress is sheer black with a cherry blossom print, her 3/4 length jacket is a Chinese print cotton.  She has a little froufrou hat and a feathery yarn boa.   I made this doll from my original pattern in 2006.