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For years, artist Olga Kamenetskaya has transformed overly made-up and mass-produced dolls into realistic figurines. Gone are painted faces featuring excessive eyeshadow and perfectly pink cheeks. Kamenetskaya strips the dolls’ makeup and opts for bushy facial hair, freckles, and even wrinkles in their skin. The results are so lifelike that you’d expect to see these people walking down the street.
One of the most impactful ways that Kamenetskaya changes her dolls is by knocking the shine off the original iteration. In her fascinating before-and-after photos, you can see she’s tweaked the symmetrical figure by altering its structure some, whether that’s increasing the width of the nose or softening the angles of the cheekbones. Then there’s the repainting of the skin; while many of the original dolls have a glossy sheen, Kamenetskaya uses matte paint and variation in tone. Coupled with a glimmer in their eyes and a soulful expression, each figurine highlights the unique beauty of physical “flaws” and encourages us to love who we are.
If you’re interested in trying doll repainting, you’re in luck. Through her Etsy shop, Kamenetskaya has video tutorials of her process. They include a class on repainting dolls and two videos demonstrating how to fashion different styles of wigs.
Olga Kamenetskaya strips overly made-up figurines and transforms them into lifelike doll art.
Olga Kamenetskaya: Instagram | Etsy
My Modern Met granted permission to use photos by Olga Kamenetskaya.
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