1. It has come to the attention of forum staff that Dollshe Craft has ceased communications with dealers and customers, has failed to provide promised refunds for the excessive waits, and now has wait times surpassing 5 years in some cases. Forum staff are also concerned as there are claims being put forth that Dollshe plans to close down their doll making company. Due to the instability of the company, the lack of communication, the lack of promised refunds, and the wait times now surpassing 5 years, we strongly urge members to research the current state of this company very carefully and thoroughly before deciding to place an order. For more information please see the Dollshe waiting room. Do not assume this cannot happen to you or that your order will be different.
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  2. Dollshe Craft and all dolls created by Dollshe, including any dolls created under his new or future companies, including Club Coco BJD are now banned from Den of Angels. Dollshe and the sculptor may not advertise his products on this forum. Sales may not be discussed, no news threads may be posted regarding new releases. This ban does not impact any dolls by Dollshe ordered by November 8, 2023. Any dolls ordered after November 8, 2023, regardless of the date the sculpt was released, are banned from this forum as are any dolls released under his new or future companies including but not limited to Club Coco BJD. This ban does not apply to other company dolls cast by Dollshe as part of a casting agreement between him and the actual sculpt or company and those dolls may still be discussed on the forum. Please come to Ask the Moderators if you have any questions.
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Severe ongoing issues and concerns with Dollshe Dollshe Ban

BJD Artist Thread

Jan 24, 2021

    1. Do we have or can we make a thread of individual artists that make bjd’s. I find most of them on Instagram and I’m starting to prefer them over major companies. I know about PashaPasha but I know there’s more artists that need to gain more attention. As collectors in the hobby, I feel it’s our duty to let them be known and seen. I also prefer the individuality of the artists dolls.
       
      #1 Holiday, Jan 24, 2021
      • x 1
    2. I think it would help if there would be a proper definition of what constitutes an "artist" doll first.
      A lot of BJD "companies" are in fact just one or two people as well, who outsource their casting much like the majority of "artists" do.
      The only difference is that they aren't as open about it to a western audience, as in they don't post about their private life on Instagram and share every step of the sculpting process. That makes it appear like they are way bigger than they truly are.

      So, what is "artist" here and what is "company"? Does it depend on how much they sell? How many different sculpts they offer? How much they earn per doll? Limited selling time frame vs always open for buying at least certain models? Offering stuff aside from just dolls (like painting services or clothing)?
      I think once that is set it's also way easier to make a list :sweat
       
      #2 Ara, Jan 24, 2021
      • x 8
    3. I think the hard part is, not all artist dolls follow the guidelines for DoA, and thus it would be hard to make a list, especially since most dolls need to be approved for discussion as an on-topic doll. Any artist can have their dolls approved for discussion on DoA as long as it meets the criteria, they just have to follow the submission guidelines.

      Also, as Ara said, many of the companies only use one (or maybe two) sculptors, which you can often find on Instagram working on the models. For example, I follow a sculptor on Instagram who sculpts for Souldoll and so far they have made 95% of the dolls that Souldoll has put up for sale since I started following them. So, defining "Artist dolls" and "company dolls" is really a blurry line.
       
      #3 errinreynolds, Jan 24, 2021
      • x 5
    4. What's the insta for the souldoll artist?
       
      #4 bahboh, Jan 24, 2021
    5. Their handle is _ivoryvory and they can be found here:

      Login • Instagram
       
      #5 errinreynolds, Jan 24, 2021
      • x 2
    6. Dollshe is another example of the distinction between "artist" and "company" being unclear. I get the impression its mostly a one person operation, though they've been around for a long time and have an English language website.
       
      #6 Leo Pheonix, Jan 24, 2021
    7. I remember when Dollshe was getting a shipment ready several years ago and his assistant boxing up his dolls was his mom in her living room, so not a big operation. Peak's Woods is run by two sisters, one who sculpts and one who handles the business - not a big operation. Dollstown is one person, Supia is one person, LLT is one person, etc etc.

      Are we talking "artist doll" as a shorthand for dolls made in the west? Which is a problematic since it implies only Eurocentric dolls count as art and all the others are what then? Not art?

      Or is it specific to artists that started in the art world or art doll world? Certainly that would include Pasha who was making art figures before getting into articulated dolls. Or Popovy and Enchanted who only worked in porcelain for many years only getting into BJDs more recently.

      It's probably easier to make a list of companies whose doll sculptors don't get counted as being an "artist" somehow. :nowords:
       
      #7 idrisfynn, Jan 24, 2021
      • x 4
    8. The mods are very slow at approving new ones. I understand everything, but still it is a little saddening moment.
       
      #8 LicorneDream, Jan 25, 2021
      • x 1
    9. Being a mod is a volunteer position, so it is expected that they would be delayed in such tasks. It is very hard to run a forum, moderate it, and manage to review the submissions received. Not only that but I'm sure they have to review the requests quite thoroughly.
       
      #9 errinreynolds, Jan 25, 2021
      • x 3