ARTIST STATEMENT

To create my Strange Dolls I sculpt the doll using polymer clay or air dry clays and then design and sew the outfits using vintage or remnant fabrics. I love adding organic material to my creations, I have implemented everything from human hair to teeth to cactus to dried gourds. Common themes that appear in my work are: anthropomorphism, alter ego, and fantasy. I love testing perceptions of the beautiful and sublime with my work. 

Dolls represent precious things, sentimentality, innocence and I am attracted to manipulating people's natural response to the doll form by pairing it with the grotesque. The style of the dolls are dark, creepy and macabre. And while they are called "dolls", Strange Dolls are not something you would buy for a child, unless you want to give them nightmares. 

BIO

Beth Robinson is a self-taught artist who started making "Strange Dolls" in 2003. While she dabbled in a variety of mediums, it was the discovery of polymer clay that allowed her to combine her interests in sculpting, painting, and sewing and gave her a concrete foundation of expression in the form of "Strange Dolls".

Beth’s dolls have found homes across the globe from New York to Japan. "Strange Dolls" have been featured in a multitude of art and pop culture publications, as well as radio, podcast and tv features.

She recently relocated from Burlington, Vermont to St. Louis, Missouri where she maintains a regular studio practice and is a resident artist at the Soulard Art Gallery in St Louis, MO.