In Moscow showed the puppet “Circus of Lilliputians”

“The Art of the Doll” was the title of the traditional Moscow International Exhibition in Gostiny Dvor, the thirteenth in a row. Olga Manizer, whose stand “Lilliputian Circus” aroused the greatest interest of the public, presented her view of what a doll could be today.

Participants from Russia and many countries of the world (and this year there are 26 of them) showed their works on it. Industrial Soviet period and traditional dolls of the peoples of the world, antiques from private collections and puppet dolls, realistic and futuristic, luxurious and unpretentious – here everyone could find their dream doll from childhood.

No one passed by without stopping near the works of Olga Manizer, a permanent participant of the exhibition. This year she presented her new collection – “Lilliputian Circus”. Her dolls are unusual, although they take their roots from a tradition that had a different name in different countries: in Russia they were called Tergunchiks, in Germany – Hampelmans, and in England – Jumping Jack, that is, a jumping Jack. A talented artist cuts them out by hand from cardboard so hard that you have to use special scissors to work with metal.

– Olga, why dolls? After all, your creative dynasty includes artists and sculptors. How did it happen that they inspire you?

– I have been doing graphics since the age of sixteen. Over time, I wanted to go beyond paper and canvas – into space, and so dolls appeared. First small, and then growth, that is, in human growth. From that moment on, I found myself as an artist! The doll allows you to express in a stylized form the beauty of the human face, body; convey the character of the intended character. My moving figures are flat, they can be displayed on the wall like paintings, and at the same time they have a 3D volume. So, I continue the tradition of my family – both artists and sculptors – even if not in an academic form!

– And why is this time such an exotic – midget dolls?

– I was inspired by the book “Circus Inside Out” for this collection. While reading it, I came across a story about how in the 1980s the props of one acrobatic act did not work. The solution was found like this: inside the device suspended under the dome of the circus, they put a midget bent into a “kalakik”, and he threw rings, balls and maces from above to the juggler. According to the author of the book, director Alexander Grimailo: “This know-how of the Soviet circus has never failed. Well, if only after a fun weekend and a bust of recharging.

In the circuses of London, I happened to see midgets – they were always in the light of the ramp – they defeated villains, conquered the hearts of beauties flying on a trapeze, and flew up under the dome with them in lyrical numbers. And here – the audience freezes with delight in front of the juggler, not suspecting that a tiny man with his fate, with his problems and dreams is sitting in a plate under the dome.

– Each doll has its own prototype, perhaps it has a name?

– I tried to convey the uniqueness and beauty of the world of these special people. He seems to me lonely and beautiful – like the images of cinema at the beginning of the 20th century. I wanted to keep this project in monochrome, to draw a parallel between the stars of the black and white screen – Marlene Dietrich, Vera Kholodnaya, Charlie Chaplin, Josephine Baker. It is their features that are visible in my fabulous midgets.

Olga has several collections, in past years, guests of the exhibition could already admire her Amadeus Acrobats, a series of full-length figures from the Circus Princess collection. Why are Hampeldin dolls so attractive to viewers?

– The reaction of visitors to the exhibition, their interaction with my life figures never ceases to amaze me. In 2019, they starred in a circus compliment along with my Amadeus Acrobats. And last winter, men and women held hands and looked at each other, imitating my Adam and Eve in the project “At the Crossroads of the Universe.” Children love to set the dolls in motion, take their poses, transforming into dolls for a moment. Everyone is always laughing – and it’s wonderful!

“Developing the tradition of the Hampelmanns, Olga Manizer created a new genre in art: her moving figures are a synthesis of sculpture and drawing,” Lana Letta, President of the Dolls of the World Foundation and founder of the Museum of the History of Dolls in Moscow, characterizes Olga’s work. And these are not just words: Olga is the Laureate of the VII International competition among the best representatives of world art of the Pandora Platinum doll in the nomination “One of a kind” for a new plastic embodiment of the image, which creates a special unique visual range.