Mini-Me Family

Personalized Dolls: A Long-Distance Relationship (LDR) Coping Strategy
Europe, U.S.A. & Argentina, summer 2019
For the entirety of summer of 2019, my husband and I lived and traveled on separate continents. He, a professional tango dancer, had a twenty-city tour in Europe, culminating with a performance at a prestigious tango festival. During this time, I took my own show on tour: My Cut & Paste: Zen collage series.
Using a composite of photos from our wedding day (ref: Photoshop screen capture above), we designed doll versions of ourselves which we then used sublimation to print onto fabric.
Before sewing them closed, we even made little hearts with messages on them to tuck inside and sew up.
Despite living very differently, and very far apart, I was able to keep my spouse very much "present" with me. For nearly 4 months I kept mini-Ray in my purse with me everywhere I went. I introduced him to my friends and included him in my activities. He, of course, did the same with his mini-Cassandra.
This worked astonishingly well as a long-distance relationship (LDR) coping strategy.
There was no fear or insecurity of being forgotten, because my phone was always pinging with adorable photos of mini-me doing something new with my husband. (Mini-Ray even had his own Instagram this summer!)
If you or someone you know is in a long-distance relatinoship and you would like mini-dolls made of you, please contact me at artingdarling@gmail.com and I can help you.