O'logy Boozine
Glow Magazine
The BUND Magazine
You designed a collection for JOYCE, how did this collaboration begin and how long did it take to finish them?
I began collaborating with Joyce in March of 2010, about five months ago. They contacted me after seeing several of the fashion dolls I completed for THE BLOCK magazine.
What's your favorite one and why?
My favorite one changes depending on my mood. Sometimes Marni is my favorite because I love the way the look all came together, and sometimes Yohji is my favorite because she was the first one I did.
In terms of the Grace Coddington doll and the Anna Wintour doll, could you tell us who won the auction and what's the hammer price?
Well, the names of the winners are confidential, but I think the Anna doll ended up closing at around $4,000USD and Grace around $1,000USD. Originally I thought they should both be auctioned off as a set, but the organizers thought differently, and now I'm glad because I found out that Grace went to one of my best customers, who might not have been able to afford the complete set if they were sold together!
How many kouklitas dolls have you made and sold by now?
About 200.
How long does it take to finish a doll? During the process, what's the hardest step and what's the most interesting step?
Depending on the doll, it can take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. The hardest step varies from doll to doll as well, they are each very one of a kind, but for the most part, its usually the hand sewing and finishing of the outfit that comes at the very end. But sometimes the hair is the worst, or finding matching fabrics is the hardest.
What's the first doll you've ever made? Is it a Kouklitas?
I wasn't making dolls from a very young age, mostly playing with them. For a while I was customizing Barbie dolls, rerooting their hair, changing their makeup, but I wasn't very good. The first complete doll I made was Snejana, and yes, she was the initial prototype for the Kouklitas. For the first 20-50 dolls I made I always held Snejana's face next to the blank face of the doll I was working on to make sure they looked uniform, but different. Now I have more or less memorized those proportions and do them freehand.
How are your dolls different to the rest?
They are one of a kind, but I make them to be soft and played with. When a doll becomes expensive, I think collectors' first instinct is to keep them on a shelf. I think of my doll like a luxury item. A luxury skirt is worn, so a luxury doll should be played with.
Is it easier or harder to dress a doll than to design clothes for a real woman?
I think its much easier to make clothing for dolls in a technical sense. But it is more challenging to me than designing clothing for a real woman-- for me, doing fashion design simply stopped being creative enough for me to continue working, I didn't want to develop one more skirt based off last season's best seller, or haggle with a fabric vendor about the price of something. Anything is easier when it is something you love.
Is each Kouklitas one of a kind? What kind of people are your clients?
Each Kouklita is one of a kind. Even if I make more than one of the same outfit, I make their faces different, and sometimes hair color and styling. My clients vary widely, which is something that I love. They are men and women of all ages, buying dolls of and for themselves, as gifts, as works of art.
How many collections do you have right now?
Right now I have my Kouklitas Collection, which is a pool of dolls that I assign no season to, and then there is the Editorial Collection, which is broken down into the fashion seasons. I have a few looks from Spring 2010, and the dolls I created for Joyce Boutique and Barneys New York from Fall 2010. Sometimes the fashion dolls commissioned by clients and the dolls I choose to create overlap, as in the case of the Alexander McQueen dolls I created for Showstudio in London, and Barneys New York.
In the new season( 2011S/S)，is there any impressive collection or look which you would like to put on your dolls ?
I really love the look of Yohji Yahmamoto this season. Its so feminine, romantic, and a little gothic. My taste exactly!
What are your inspirations come from?
Everywhere! Taking beautiful fabric and ruffling it in my hands and imagining a dress, watching period films, or going to fashion shows.
Who's your favorite designer/artist?
That's just as hard as picking a favorite doll! I love everything Rei Kawakubo touches, I love Marc Jacobs' mind, and the craftsmanship of the Rodarte sisters. There is a Stockholm based designer named Gabriella Loeb who makes the most gorgeous dresses, and a recent Central St. Martins graduate named Jillian Carrozza who makes the most otherworldly-yet wearable- knitwear.
I am obsessed with Marina Bychkova's Enchanted Doll, and the work of James Jean and Vania Zouraliev, and Laura Laine. I also love the work of Arthur Rackham and Mervyn Peake.
Do you have a muse?
No one or thing specifically. Maybe I am seeking her out in my dolls.
How would you describe your personal style?
Olde world romantic dollmaker mixed with a Brooklyn rock star.
What's your typical day like?
Well, I usually wake up and reply to emails from bed before I even brush my teeth. Then I get up and do all the domestic things I need to do, shower, clean, and take care of my cat. From there I walk to my studio where I usually end up writing more emails, and updating my website/blogging for another hour or so. Sometimes I find myself avoiding the actual physical "work" of the dolls, because once I start sewing, drawing, styling, I can't stop for hours and hours. I usually work right through lunch and don't stop until I realize I need to eat something, usually around the early evening. I then work until late night, eat, walk home, and go to bed. That's in a period of high volume work (I.E: the last six months.). I go into Manhattan a few times a week for business meetings and fabric buying, but that's about it.
You started as a fashion designer, will you do fashion again?
Not commercially, unless its the right project. I will always make clothes for myself, and costumes for friends when we go to parties. I am moving into more of a fine art realm with the dolls, experimenting with them in all different mediums-- photography, music, and film--and I am very happy with that.
If someone ask you to make a Chinese kouklitas, what will come to your mind first?
My father traveled to China some years ago and brought back several wooden heads that were used as puppets in little opera shows. The one he gave to me has long white hair, brilliant pink makeup, and a striking green bird on her head. I would love to remake her as a Kouklita and do some reasearch on traditional dress in the period that is being shown. Little goddesses from the Chinese opera!
DOLLS Magazine
The Fashionisto
"Red model Maxim Knox joins Kyle Parsons for a special feature entitled Swoon Éphémère, co-directed by Andrew Yang and Ramón J. Goñi. The moving piece features Yang’s intriguing line of fashion dolls called The Kouklitas, which are currently carried at Barneys, Showstudio and Joyce Boutique Hong Kong..."
Tavi @ BARNEYS NEW YORK FNO 2010
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Photo: Nathaniel Sentosa
Interview in the the premiere edition of Fullfrontalfashion.com by Bradford Shellhammer
MADE Magazine
