My Favorite Videos

Sculpting the Head by Jodi and Richard Creager

Automata--from the exhibition of Antique Automata in France circa 1980's

Sculpting Hands with Jodi and Richard Creager

Wonderland of Music Boxes and Automata

George Stuart Videos

Living Dolls, The Artistry of Martha Armstrong-Hand

Les Petites Dames de Mode, Little Ladies of Fashion--John Burbidge

My Favorite Books

Doll Sculpting by Lewis Goldstein

Sculpting Dolls in Cernit by Marleen Engler

Sculpting Dolls in Paperclay by Robert McKinley

Dollmaking--One Artist's Approach by Robert McKinley

Fantasic Figures by Susanna Oroyan

How to Make Clay Characters by Maureen Carlson

Drawing the Head and Figure by Jack Hamm

The Body of Christ-In the Art of Europe and New Spain 1150 to 1800 by James Clifton

Designing the Dolls by Susanna Oroyan (See one of my figures on page 79.)

Cabaret Mech- Movement by Aidan Lawernce & Gary Alexander

Facial Expressions by Gary Faigin

The Figure by Walter Reed

My Favorite Master Painters of Angels

Fra Angelico

Hans Memling

Jan Van Eyck

Carlos Schwabe

IL Garo Falo

Sandro Botticelli

Francesso Granacci

Francesco Botticini

Benozzo Gozzoli

Pietro Perungino

Antonio Pollaivolo

Michaelangelo

Leonardo da Vinci

Filippino Lippi

Phillippe de Champaigne

Fra Angelico was perhaps the most known for the beauty of his angels, for even Michaelangelo exclaims "he surely must have seen these heavenly creatures to painted them so beautifully."

My Favorite Automata Makers -Masters of the Magic-

Jacques de Vaucanson (born 1709)--The Flute Player--The Duck--The Flute and Drum Player.(all life size)

Jaquet-Droz ---The Writer, Musician and Draughtsman of which were admired in 1775 by Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette.(perfect articulation-- in writing ,drawing and even the breathing while playing the harpsichord)

Jean-Eugene Robert Houdin--(1805-1871)---His peices were not really automata(False Automata) as they did not contain the principal movement within and the power to continue the commands, but were activated by different tricks and slight of the hand by the Master of illusion himself.(though he did know how to make and did make automata, but he was more fascinted and mastered the "magical" part of this illusion)

DeCamps-- One who coordinated a much more admirable and graceful movement in the automata of which were invented by man.

Alexandre Nicolas Therode--(1807-1880) His 1867 Exhibition of the Great Boulder with several automata won the hearts of all who saw it.

Blaise Bontems--(1814-1881)--He had learned the art of taxidermy as a young man and soon desired to animate the birds he stuffed--- his method of the most natural articulation in the birds was so perfected that it has not been surpassed , even in today's age.

Jean Marie Phalibois--(1835-1900)---His animated scenes on bases were covered in glass domes, and most meticulously made.

Jean Roullet and Ernest Decamps---they became associates in 1889 and were known for the life-like movements in animals and for the marvelous movements of the automata such as the jumping,crawling, leaping,hopping and walking.

Leopold Lambert--(1854-1935) He and his wife Eugenie Bourgeouis,as the seamstress, created some of the most highly detailed dressed small pieces that had limited movment, while their larger pieces had more elaborate movements and again the same detailed costuming.

Gustave Vichy(1839-1904) and Henry Vichy (born 1866)--their 1893 exhibition in the Chicago World's Fair won them the recognition of having the more polished mechanical toys. Later Henry incorporated the ability to have the automata speak and sing.

Renou--- This firm was created in 1847 by Dehais et Laforest. His heads on the automata were mostly made by Jumeau and were smaller than most automata of the era, which made them less expensive, but very popular to the public.

---------Edgar Allan Poe even devoted an essay about automata on Von Kemplen's Chess Player--------(in the catagory of False Automata)