By Martha Puff, Photos by Michael Puff

Doll artist Elle Piccolo, an International Guild of Miniature Artisans fellow in figures, sculpts imaginative “little people” and portrait dolls. What sets an Elle doll apart is its lifelike expression and demeanor.

“Each doll is very real to me, and I expect it to move or speak at any moment,” Elle says. “I feel as though their eyes follow me around the studio.”

Elle began her career in the 1980s as a landscape, still life, and portrait painter. Then, in the early 1990s, Elle saw some 1:12 scale dolls at a local miniature store. Drawing on her experience in portraiture, Elle soon began sculpting her own character dolls with realistic features and emotions.

“Inspiration comes from everywhere,” Elle says. “It can be the interesting face of a person I have seen or someone I have known for a long time. Oftentimes a character in an old black and white movie will stimulate my imagination.” 

A visual artist, Elle is well known for her portrait dolls. Famous performers she has sculpted include Frank Sinatra, James Dean, and Marilyn Monroe, plus many customers and their families. “My most recent portrait doll is Meryl Streep in the 2006 film ‘The Devil Wears Prada,’” Elle shares. “She plays a powerful and demanding fashion magazine editor. I chose fabrics, fur, and accessories to give an illusion of elegant attire.” (See “A Doll Extravaganza,” p. 30, November 2007 Doll Reader.)

Elle sculpts her one-of-a-kind 1:12 scale dolls from a mixture of Cernit and Fimo polymer clays. She uses wool, mohair, and synthetic fibers to wig the dolls.  “Although I use many variations of cotton, my favorite fabrics to use for costuming are silk and linen,” Elle says. “Silk comes in beautiful textures without much sheen. It is a fabric that adds so much more to an outfit.”

An established artist, Elle says her dolls keep evolving. “I spend hours at the library researching,” Elle shares. “For me, creating dolls is a life-long adventure. I hope to make exciting and innovative ‘little people’ for many years to come.”

You can reach Elle at P.O. Box 65253, Virginia Beach, VA 23467, epartdol@hotmail.com or www.ellepiccolodolls.com.

Doll Reader "Wee Ones" Feature
Buy This Issue: December 2007