Sophie - Art Doll

She's finally finished!! Hooray! I've never spent so many hours on one doll as I have on Sophie. I'm so happy to have taken the month long master doll making class. I definitely needed to learn some new tips and tricks to up my quality. That's what I've been focusing on, quality vs. quantity. I want to now bring what I've learned while creating Sophie into my every day sculpture illustration. It's a heck of a lot more work but it shows.

Sophie is a french little girl, styled in a rococo themed costume. I purposely made her clothing look antiqued and aged slightly. It has to look lived-in, even though it is quite an extravagant ensemble. I hope you all enjoy. This the labour of love. 

Little Girl

She's almost alive, still have a bunch of work to do though. She need some lashes, styles hair, hair piece, and of course a super detailed costume. I've mentioned before I'm taking my time on this one, and I really am. I'm so used to having to rush for short deadlines, it's really nice just working on something at my own pace and making a fully finished doll.

Every piece of art that gets a few extra hours, looks a whole lot more complete. I always appreciated artwork more when you can tell the artist spent a lot of time it, versus a 2 hour finish. I'm working on multiple other projects at the moment as well, but I'm so excited to share the final pieces with you guys once I'm done. I will not disappoint.

Sculpting Class

This is a process peek of a slightly larger doll I'm working on. She stands at 12" high. Normally my sculptures are around 8-10". I actually want to make an even larger doll after this, it's just better for overall detail and a lot easier to work with.

I'm currently in a master doll making class, there's only about 8 classes but I get to learn how to make better, more stable armature (or the skeleton of the doll), how to sketch out the doll properly to make all the joints and connections at the right place (for accurate proportions), and of course just more quality sculpting and costume making. I always want to perfect my craft and bring all my work to the next level. This is me trying to do so. I highly recommend anyone to take some extra classes in whatever your medium is, it just really helps you to see things in a different light and take better approaches to your work. Because the planning stages are just as important as the outcome. If you have sloppy sketches, you'll have a sloppy piece. I know it's hard to say "take your time" in a fast pace world, with short deadlines looming, but it really does make a difference. It's a shame that everything is so rushed these days, incredible artwork needs time. The great masters of our past couldn't create the marvels they did in a 1 week deadline, they took years..and it definitely shows.

Have a good week guys,
Kira

Making of: Phoenix New Times Cover 'Book Heaven'

So many layers required to recreate the look of an old book

Hey friends!

New cover piece, new client.. hooray. I got asked to create this cover for Phoenix New Times for an article about the death of books, in other words - the book trashing trend that's happening. Technology is taking over with e-books, iPads and the internet over all. At the same time there's a book worshipping trend also happening. Old books are used to fill spaces/decoration purposes, artists use them to make art (kind of ironic since I did use 2 old books for this piece), and hipsters are wearing t-shirts with classic book titles.

This piece was a bit different from what I'm used to, since I'm always asked to create people in my illustrations. Non the less, an interesting change from my usual work. Enjoy!

Kira
www.kirashaimanova.com

Posers: Contemporary Portraits - Art Show

Hey Friends!
I'll be showing new work at Oz Studios (Toronto) on Friday March 1st for the opening party. There will be about 24 super talented artists & friends exhibiting. If you love a good portrait show, I shall see you there :)

Seductress Doll Process

Doing make-up on dolls never gets old

Head tilt & refining body

Lots of piece by piece hair gluing and styling

She's made for standing, but laying down looks pretty natural to her.

Touches of gold to the eyes and hair-piece

Loved this dark lighting, had to take this shot

Hello Friends!

Here's more updates for you. More personal work I've been working on. I've been practicing refining my dolls more than usual to get a higher quality to my work. It obviously takes longer to achieve, but the result is worth it.

I'm also going to be taking a master sculpting class to learn more about refined sculpting, proper clothing/costume creation, hair styling.. etc. Most of those things I've been self taught in and had developed over time. Just simple things like finding the right type of hair that works for you, or lashes, even the armature takes a while to figure out. I'm also curious about trying clays with a harder feel to them, so it's easier to capture more details in hands and other parts of the body. Softer clays tend to break often and getting into finer details is a lot more difficult. I've also learned that you can even mix different clays together, but that's all in experimentation.

 Happy sculpting! I'll have new work up soon :)

WIP: Doll Peek #2

Tedious hair curling and gluing to make a removable wig

Beaded crown creation. Stringing the beads was way too much of a hassle, glue gunning worked best.

Hey guys! I wanted to post some more process photos for you. This piece is already been completed and photographed. I'm working on another similar piece to this one, kind of a mini series. I can't wait to share the finals soon. I must say it's very different from my usual stuff, more on the end of fashion and fairy tales. It's a whole different mood as well. I tend to have a lot of humor and super bright colors in my work, but I wanted to go in a different direction, just something I wanted to create for a while.

Stills from The Sheepdogs music video

Stills captured by Matt Barnes

My site is now updated, you can find the official music video there. Go to: http://kirashaimanova.com/sheepdogs.html. I'm so happy with the turnout, it turned out almost like a mini action movie. I did my best sculpting these guys even in a short deadline, but I think it's my best resemblance yet. Hope you guys love it!!

Official Sheepdogs 'Feeling Good' video - dolls by Kira Shaimanova

Dolls made for Sheepdogs Music Video 'Feeling Good'

Initial rough facial sketches for the dolls to be.

These dolls were to resemble the likeness of each band member from The Sheepdogs (Ewan Currie, Ryan Gullen, Leot Hanson, and Sam Corbett).

Just goofing around with these guys before they're off for the big video shoot.

Scene from the actual music video set.

This is probably one of the coolest projects I've gotten to work on yet. It's amazing to see my Sheepdogs dolls in motion, shooting guns, fighting ninjas, rescuing hot girls, the works. I got to work with Matt Barnes as well, he's an awesome photographer, he shot the whole video in stop-motion. You must watch the full video!!!

For Canadians: Click Here To Watch

For US: Click Here To Watch

www.kirashaimanova.com

WIP: Doll Peek

Happy New Year Friends!

I finally get to make some personal work again, hoorray for that!! Every time a new year begins I get inspired to do some personal work. All the ideas just rush in and my hands get busy drawing and sculpting. I'm trying something new as usual, can't get stuck on one thing. I think it's better to progress and try new things, doesn't necessarily have to fit in with your other work, it's just taking what you do out of the norm and to another level. People will always be able to tell you're work by you're personal style. For this piece I'm working with some new fabrics, lots of sewing ahead, and a slightly different mood as well. I'm sure you noticed the female character's expression, not my usual humorous direction. Well we shall see what comes if it I'm excited about it.

Cheers :)

New Work! Holiday themed

This is fun piece I got to do for Time Out Chicago, about loving the holidays even if you're single. I really enjoyed making an old fashion style bar, with all the wood texture in there, although it was a mission. The little alcohol bottles took forever by the way. I did some spot illustrations also for this same article, more so floating images/sculptures. I'll make sure I get a photo of them when I get my issue in the mail. Can't wait to see them in print!


See more work at: www.kirashaimanova.com

Bitsy's are Coming Home for Christmas

What a great gift one of these little guys would be. There are still a few left. If you want a Bitsy in time for Christmas you should order before Dec 12th to make sure they get there in time for the special occasion.

They'll arrive in a decoratively printed box, including a postcard, a signed/numbered certificate and a care sheet on how to care for your hand made toy.

You can find them for sale my on Etsy SHOP.

Happy Shopping! xo

Made By Hand show / Bitsy Launch

If you guys couldn't make to the 'Made By Hand' show, don't be bummed. You can still get your very own Bitsy in my SHOP. Christmas will be around the corner soon and these guy will definitely make one heck of a special gift for some one. They're so cuddly. Everyone loved holding them at the show, apparently they feel like a little baby in your arms, since they have some weight to them. I'm so happy this collection is completed and I can start some work on other projects. Do visit my shop on Etsy :).

Cheers,
Kira

Genuine Bitsy Toy Launch TOMORROW!

Hey guys! The big day is tomorrow, I'm so excited. I've been working on this collection what seems like forever. It's been a very serious project, I don't know how I finished 40 toys by hand. I had to just challenge myself and do something I've never done. I love the sculpting process, but I always wanted to make something that can actually be played with and not break if dropped. So I came up with these little characters. I wanted the toys to channel an antique whimsical feel. They're all special in different ways and to each their own.

I'll be @ booth #123 tomorrow from 11-5pm at the International Centre, Hall 6, 6900 Airport Rd, Mississauga. It's a one day event at the 'Made by Hand' show. Over 190 exhibitors, lots to see. It should be a fun time. Hope to see you there.

xo

Made By Hand show

 

Bitsy's will finally be available Oct 27th @ the Made by Hand show in the International Centre, Mississaga. Remember this is a limited edition collection, so there is only 10 of each Bitsy toy in existence. All have a logo attachment, along with a number 1-10. They'll be gone fast so make sure you leave a deposit and reserve one,  if you can't make it down. This is a one day event!! Bitsy's will be available for sale in my shop after the 27th and can be shipped worldwide. I hope to see your smiling faces @ the Bitsy launch.

Kira

Making of: Genuine Bitsy Collection

Making plastic molds out of silicone, it's a messy job, but pretty darn fun watching the solution turn from clear to white.

Messy studio floor. Do not get this stuff on your clothes - damaged!

 

Bow ties for Bitsy Bear

 

Primed and ready for acrylic paint

Clearly building and army here!

This is one heck of a process, but I wanted to challenge myself and come out with a beautiful toy collection. They're not only for show, but can be played with as well, since plastic isn't the least as delicate as clay. If dropped, they're perfectly fine. From sewing, to stuffing, to molds and casts, to priming, painting, gluing, and of course accessorizing. The sewing alone took a good month and a half to do. Let's do some math here:

 40 bodies
 40 tails
 40 heads
 40 faces
 20 belly buttons
 80 arms
 80 legs
 80 hands
 80 feet
 80 ears
 30 bow ties
 20 collars
.....................
 630  Parts to make, using 2 hands :| Whoa, that's crazy, I shocked myself just now. I hope you guys love this collection.