I've made dolls with people in the U.S., in India, in China, and now, in Mongolia. It seems to me that people are drawn to dolls and doll-making because dolls are made in our own human image. Creating a doll in a mixed-language group helps create a common language -- two eyes, one nose, one mouth, two arms, and so on. We are so much more alike than we are different.
These are just a few of the talented quilters I worked with in Ulaanbaatar.
I brought this doll, upcycled from a sock and scraps of fabric, as a model for one of the dolls I'd be teaching the group to make. It was met with sighs of, "Oh, how Chinese!" and "That is a Chinese doll." Yes, that makes sense, as she was made by me in China with Chinese materials.
Newly made Mongolian dolls!
