Petite Amie Print

Petite Amie is a character in my collection of papier-maché marionettes based on Hector Malot's classical book « Sans Famille ». It is one of my favorites since childhood. Recently my volunteering in Children's Hospital in Riga led me to think that dis-functional families hadn't changed so much since 19th century's France. My heart hurt, images of unhappy children hunted me till I started to make this collection. Petite Amie is Harpist's first love and childhood friend. After a serious illness she has become mute and communicates in the language of the eyes since then. I added some self-portrait features to her character – she is in the worst state of artistic extinction : pale, bloodless, the last drop of blood drips down her nose. Marionettes are in-between an object of art and a magical rite. I use abstract face and hair colors to get closer to my characters soul and to create a realistic personage by detaching it from self-evident reality. Petite Amie measures 87x38x20 cm without strings and control. She is designed and hand-made entirely by me. Her body, arms and legs are soft, made from decorative fabric and lace (the lace comes from a gown of an unknown bride). Her body is stuffed with different weight materials (sintepon, scraps of fabric, stones) to maintain a natural balance of movements. Her body is jointed in head, shoulders, elbows,wrists, upper torso, hips and knees. Joints in knees are partially flexible, because her soft upper leg is jointed directly to the shank. Each joint is hand-sewn together and carefully fixed with buttons. Petite Amie is made in different shades of pale lilac, with few touches of color : a red crystal blood drop and a yellowish silk crinoline with flower motifs. Her impressive hairstyle is influenced by aristocratic ladies from Middle-ages. Her pigtails are made from pink crocheted yarn, decorated with pompons of white feather. His face, hands and bare feet are made from papier-maché. At first they are sculpted as a clay model, then multiple layers of papier-maché are applied to create a harmonious mixture of perfect form and color. For me, hands and feet are as characteristic as the face to reveal puppet's personality. Petite Amie's slightly limited movements in knees helps to reveal her childish insecurity and physical disability. For her hand gestures, I copied some incredible movements of my daughters little fingers. Her eyes are hand-embroidered from pale lilac and grey beads, they contribute to reveal the state of her fleeting soul. Her beautiful eyelashes are made of crocheted lace. I wanted to create a feeling of fragility and a desire to be a lady at the same time, so her figure has a childish plumpness and an innate grace.

Print:Giclee on Photo Paper

Size:8 W x 12 H x 0.1 D in

Size with Frame:13.25 W x 17.25 H x 1.2 D in

Delivery Time:Typically 5-7 business days for domestic shipments, 10-14 business days for international shipments.