Artist Marie (“Mewie”) is an illustrator and sculptor. Her imagination runs free at Creature Dolls by Mewiefish. Her humanoid figures and BJDs are unlike any others.
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Q: Hi! Can you tell everyone a little about yourself and how you became interested in making dolls?
A: Concerning my background, this is what you can find on my site in the About section :
“I’m a sculptor-drawer and I’m living in a region called Vendée (France). After 2 years in a drawing school, I decide to work as a freelance artist and to make books and comics for children. I look for a publisher for my books projects but as it is very difficult to find one, I decide at the same time to test sculpting stuff. In 2007, I come across a BJD site. I fall in love with these strange dolls and that stimulates my creativity. I try then to create my own BJD doll even if the first attempts are not very successful. Finally, I present my first BJD called XB12 at theLdoll Festival in Lyon in 2011. Further to good feedbacks on my work, I decide to go on with dolls and monsters. I create Bactro in 2012, Feldspathe and Ambroise in 2013, Pollen in 2014, Little radish in 2016 and a mini Bactro in 2017. I love sculpting too strange and oneiric creatures. I would like to spend more time on these kind of sculptures because it’s a so great way for imagination. In the meantime, I gather together all my creations under the “Creatures Dolls” name: that’s what I want to show in my works, the strange and weird scope of imaginary world; that’s the most interesting for me, it really stimulates my brain.”
This is a good summary 🙂
I discovered BJDs really by accident, but it was really a happy accident. 🙂 I don’t remember what was I looking on internet, but I saw a Unoa face, with a really realistic make-up and was stunned… I wanted to know what was this thing! And after a little research, I discovered that it was a doll called “BJD”. I found this very interesting! As a children, I always loved articulated figures and I thought it was less funny to play with Barbie because it was not articulated as I wanted. Ahah I could have a revenge!
At the very begining, I showed my BJD to a friend of mine, and she told me that I could try to make my own dolls, but it looked so difficult to me at that time. Why not!… I had no idea on how to start, what materials to work with, and after a few researches, I couldn’t find enough information on the internet because a few people only created dolls and there was no information about the making process. I decided to make some tests with different materials on my free time. The first attempts were really horrible! I bought a Unoa facea while before and I wanted to make this face a body and a headback, and it was a disaster. She couldn’t stand on her own, the joints were horrible, nothing was well done, but I didn’t have enough money to buy a body at the moment (and the MSD size to begin with was a bad idea because it was too big to cope with when you’re a beginner). This body finished in the bin.
I had to read a lot of things about sculpting and one of the artists who gave me the more information was Lillycat (Lillycat Dolls). She had one of the rare sites with information about how to make a BJD, WIP pictures, she gave advice and talked about how she created dolls, so it was really interesting! I could find some books on the doll making process too, even if it was in Japanese. I also joined a BJD forum (Materiel Celeste) so I can find more information about making dolls and more about dolls in general because I was fascinated by BJDs. At this moment, I decided to create another doll, a little one so it can be more flexible to work on, with all the new information I collected. Of course it was much easier and faster. I shared my WIP pictures on the forum and I had a good feedback. I was really happy 🙂 This new doll was inspired by one of my comics characters, a little guy with flame on his head. It was quite difficult to make something in 3D with a flat drawing, but I did something not too bad and I thought it would be cool to make it in resin. I had a few interested on the forum but at the end nobody wanted to buy it.
Anyway, I discovered how to make molds and make resin casting with the help of my sister who works in an artistic smelting plant. It was really a big help!! I could make a few resin samples and it was so great to see the character in resin! After this episode, I really wanted to make more things in doll’s world, I was spending more time on dolls than on drawings and comics, I had to make a choice… So I decided to participate in a doll festival and to make another doll that I could show at this moment. I wanted to make something “alien like” and very graceful at the same time. I spent hours of work on this doll … It was the XB12 model, but I had so many nice comments on the forum, people were very enthusiastic, and it was really motivating! (because in comic’s world, you don’t have compliments on your work, it’s not motivating at all!) I could make 6 resin samples for the Ldoll (2011) and I tried to make something really clean and nice boxes. I sold I think 4 dolls and I was soooo happy! It was a challenge too because I lived with my boyfriend, who was also working at home (he’s a comics artist) in a very tiny flat, so it was really difficult to work with resin, plaster, Ladoll and all these materials in a such small place.
During the festival, I had really good feedback, made new friends and had a really good time discovering some dolls for real (and talking with creators!).
Then I decided to go on with dolls. The next doll I made was Bactro, it was hard to make it as she’s tall and has a really strange face. I was terrified to imagine that maybe nobody would like to buy such a strange doll, maybe even people would think she’s ugly or something. I was really really stressed (I was ill during the festival, that’s not a good memory), but I had a nice welcome for her, and I could sell them all, that’s was so crazy. I had many compliments about her, that was so wonderful !
Q: What was the name of the character with the flame on his head?
A: The character with small flames was called “Flammèche”, it means little flame. It was really not the best of my work but he’s funny 🙂
Q: So are you now working on books and drawings along with dolls or do you prefer to sculpt only?
A: Well, I really prefer to sculpt actually. I only draw for my initial researches, to draw the next doll I will create or to decide what she’s gonna wear or what color would suit better, these kind of things. I don’t draw anymore for books or comics books as I had to concentrate on doll creation, and it takes so much time! At the moment it’s hard for me to sculpt as I had too many personal problems, so my creation rhythm is really low, I hope it will go up a bit very soon !
Q: What doll events do you attend? Do you go as a vender?
A: In 2018 I will only go to Ldoll festival in next October (Lyon, France), I don’t have dolls enough to go to other doll events and money is always a problem too. I have to choose where I go and what to show and sell, I cannot spend a lot of money in doll events through the year unfortunately… This year I was a tattoo apprentice, so I didn’t have much time to spend on dolls too, that’s a problem for doll events. Oh yes, most of the time I go to doll festivals as a vender, it would be funny to go as a visitor sometimes! Because attending a doll festival is very stressful as it’s my full time job.
Q: You have release something new every year?
A: Ahah yes ! it was a crazy rhythm to release new things every year ! It was very tiring to be so active. I had to think what i can do for the next show, start sculpting, and thinking about the next doll to come in the same time -.if it was really interesting, if someone already had the same idea before me or not, how to announce the new release etc… It’s a lot of work and a year is too short! But it was a good way to catch the attention of people, to explore different things and offer a large range of dolls.
Q: Will there be a new doll for 2018?
A: Well, I’m preparing a new doll for the Ldoll festival, but not a whole new one, it’s more an alternative one. All I can say for now is that the size will be MSD 🙂
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Images above: drawings by the artist
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