Preview 38 portraits of vintage mannequins in this keepsake, print-on-demand photo art portfolio. Available through MagCloud – $12 a copy includes free digital version!

My fascination with mannequins began, like many passions, in childhood with my first and only doll. She was a walking doll because she had jointed legs. I named her Nancy and when I taught in my imaginary school, Nancy was the only real pupil.

In adolescence, as a tall and gangly girl, I admired the glamorous models I saw in Seventeen and Vogue magazines. So it was no surprise that later in my travels I was attracted to mannequins in store windows, flea markets, and museums.

I photographed these lifeless beauties who epitomized their eras and who, paradoxically, seemed to be alive with unique personalities and stories to tell, if only they could speak.

All Dolled Up focuses on contemporary & vintage mannequins photographed in British Columbia, the Gaspé region of Quebec and Ontario. They were shot both on slide film and digitally using Canon SLRs. They form part of my ongoing artistic exploration on the theme Yesterday’s Perfume.