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From the Alice in Wonderland Collection comes The Nursery Alice, 17 inches, holding a pig baby. This fully-jointed, all-felt doll is based on the first color images Sir John Tenniel drew for publication in 1865. The doll will be available in July and is limited to 250. |
Alice in Wrightland
R. John Wright presents the newest Alice in his series, all based on Sir
John Tenniel's 19th-century illustrations for Lewis Carroll's Alice in
Wonderland books.
By Marianne Clay
Drawings by Sir John Tenniel
For almost three decades, husband and wife R. John and Susan Wright have
devoted themselves to creating all-felt dolls in the tradition of toy
companies a century ago. Today the pieces from R. John Wright Dolls, Inc.,
now located in Bennington, Vt., are counted among the finest dolls being made.
Interestingly, John and Susan have most often found their inspiration in
children's classic stories.
Over the years, they've recreated many of childhood's best-loved
characters, including Christopher Robin and Winnie-the-Pooh, Peter Rabbit,
Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, Pinocchio, Raggedy Ann and Andy, Curious
George, and the Little Prince. "Quite a few are favorite characters from our
own childhoods," says John, "but most we read anew to our own four children as
they were growing up. It was then that we were inspired to produce characters
from them."
Recently we talked to John about the Alice series they're now creating.
They are basing each piece on the illustrations by Sir John Tenniel, a
political cartoonist. He drew the best-known and most beloved illustrations
for Lewis Carroll's two Alice books, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, first
published in 1865, and Through the Looking-Glass, And What Alice Found There,
first published in 1872.
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R. John Wright stands in front of the Alice reference board in the design room. |
Doll Reader:
You recently moved the location of your company. How do you like your new
location in Vermont?
R. John Wright:
Unbelievably fantastic! We have 17 acres of lovely Vermont land, and we are
only five minutes from home! We have only been here two months, but feel like
we have been here forever. Fortunately, every one of our employees relocated
with us so there was a minimum disruption to production.
DR:
Now, let's talk about the Alice series. How did you come to select the Alice
books for your newest series? Are these two books personal favorites?
RJW:
The books are personal favorites and, of course, these two books are among the
most enchanting in the entire world of children's literature. Carroll was a
creative genius, and the illustrations by Tenniel are no less inspired. We
have wanted to tackle this project for many years.
DR:
Will your series include pieces from characters in both Lewis Carroll books,
the first one, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland as well as the second one,
Through the Looking-Glass, And What Alice Found There?
RJW:
Yes, it will. Most of the well-known characters make their appearance in the
first book, but there are a few in the second book that we will undoubtedly do
such as Tweedledee and Tweedledum. The next character to come out will be The
Mad Hatter.
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Artisans at R. John Wright Dolls put the finishing touches on Alice in Wonderland. |
DR:
When you did you begin this series?
RJW:
The series began with the first Alice, and she made her debut at the 2003 Toy
Fair. This year we introduced the Alice as she was shown holding the baby pig
in the first color illustrations in 1889.
DR:
When will the series end, and how many pieces will it include when
complete?
RJW:
It's difficult to say when the series will end because we don't know yet how
many pieces it will include! All the characters require an enormous amount of
research and development to bring to fruition because they are all so totally
unique.
DR:
But other artists have also illustrated the Alice books, correct?
RJW:
Yes. Interestingly enough, Carroll illustrated the first book himself in a
rather primitive style. But fortunately, he engaged Tenniel to provide the
images for the first publication of both the books. It is not only Lewis
Carroll's brilliant story that has made Alice such a well-loved book but
Tenniel's illustrations, too. As Alice herself comments at the beginning of
the story, "What is the use of a book without pictures?"
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The prototype for Alice shows the all-felt sculptural body. |
DR:
Why do you choose to base your series on the Tenniel's illustrations?
RJW:
In our minds, the original illustrations are so definitive as to be forever
linked to Carroll's text. Many other great illustrators have tried their hand
at it—including Disney's animators—but Tenniel's images remain the
most indelible. Today Tenniel's images are instantly recognizable by almost
everyone.
DR:
Sir John Tenniel was blind in one eye, following a fencing accident he had in
his youth. Obviously having sight in just one eye did not hamper him one bit.
He created more than 2000 political cartoons for Punch and became famous for
these cartoons, even receiving the knighthood for them, though today he is
best remembered for illustrating the Alice books. So I wondered: do you think
a "problem" can sometimes be helpful to an artist?
RJW:
Interesting question. Since birth, I have had a significant hearing loss in
one ear due to nerve damage. Sometimes I think this made me gravitate towards
the visual arts. What is perceived as a negative can actually result in
something positive. This concept extends to our chosen medium in doll making.
By deciding to make our dolls out of felt, we impose a limit on ourselves just
to see where that leads. The restrictions the medium brings actually become
part of the creative process. Interesting, isn't it?
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The first Alice doll, Alice in Wonderland, was limited to 750 pieces and is no longer available… |
DR:
Sir John Tenniel created 42 illustrations for Lewis Carroll's Alice's
Adventures in Wonderland and 50 illustrations for Though the Looking-Glass,
And What Alice Found There. But he and the author often quarreled about
artistic issues, such as the relationship of the illustrations to the text.
Do you think creative excellence can be spurred by this sort of
disagreement?
RJW:
I knew that Tenniel and Carroll had differences. It probably didn't help that
Lewis Carroll had already illustrated the first book himself. Undoubtedly, he
had very clear ideas of how he wanted the characters depicted. He often
annoyed Tenniel with his criticisms and suggestions. It's possible that the
friction between the two in some way aided the creative process. We haven't
done much collaborating with other artists, but Susan and I certainly
collaborate. I like to say that we "take turns giving up." We do
occasionally have artistic differences, but they are easily resolved. We
discuss the issue back and forth until we reach a mutual agreement. It's
really quite civilized because we value each other's input. We seem to share
only one artistic "ego" between us.
DR:
Apparently Lewis Carroll pleaded with his illustrator to draw the animals,
such as the Cheshire Cat and the Caterpillar, from real life. But Sir John
Tenniel insisted on drawing them in his own fanciful way, and I think we all
agree his illustrations are perfect. Any plans to create the Cheshire Cat or
the Caterpillar?
RJW:
We do plan to do the Chesire Cat as well as Humpty Dumpty. There are so many
fantastic characters, and they all present such a contrast to the lovely
Alice!
DR:
And what about the most fanciful one of all, the Jabberwock? Will you try to
create that one, or is that character best left to our imaginations?
RJW:
I think you might be right. The Jabberwock may be best left to our
imaginations!
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