Larisa Churkina doll page

N.

I was clever enough to live my life foolishly.

Faina Ranevskaya

The art should be grateful to a collector for its existence because he is the one who pays.

Picasso

There were few attempts in my life to do a serious job, for example to pursue science. I even wrote and defended the science dissertation at the biophysics department of the Moscow State University.

But the most enjoyable things for me were nonsensical and �foolish� (possibly this is the attitude of serious people to any kind of creativity). And due to that nonsensical behaviour I made my first doll. I grabbed it and went to learn to the famous puppet theatre of Sergey V. Obrastsov. Having worked for few years at the workshops of the theatre I started to realise that making dolls is not a �foolish� and nonsensical business. But I could not change my job, as it is so fascinating to create the dolls.

Few years passed. Now I have to admit, especially looking at the other artists� dolls that making dolls is not a �foolish� business but it is very serious. Dolls are the art.

And although I am doing a serious job now and I am still making my dolls (but now at the art gallery Vakhtangov ), I do not intend to change my occupation. My new craft became my new way of life. I learn to love people while making the portrait doll and while peering into people�s birthmarks and moles I learn to be patient. And I am really happy when the original of my doll is recognisable and when people like my work. I am happy that my mom does not ask me anymore to stop doing �foolish� things! And I hope that some day I will manage to make the doll that I myself will be pleased with.