Japanese Dolls

When I was a child my dad was in the merchant navy, he was an engineer and back in those days you were able to take your family with you on occasional trips

My first trip was at the age of five and I went with my mother to France and on the HMS Takoma City we travelled to New Orleans, Panama, Japan, Vancouver and back via the Panama Canal to be anchored at Tilbury over Christmas.

It was on this trip, in Japan that I was given my first Japanese Doll. My memories of the places we visited are very limited but seeing Japanese fabrics brings back a strong the sense of being in beautiful department stores filled with endless displays of delicate pattern and colour. Oh and you could play on the toys in the toy department and many of the stores had play areas on their roofs, great fun when you’re five.

Over the years my Japanese lady had to be decluttered and I don’t have her anymore and that, and the loss of many other items from my childhood has been playing on my mind recently.

Many books on creativity tell you that your own life and history is a well of inspiration and I’ve recently been drawn back to that time when I was five and a later trip to Japan when I was 12. And for some reason my main point of focus has been Japanese Dolls.

They encapsulate so many aspects of Japanese culture. The calm, yet determined expressions, the intricate fabric, the different shapes, designs and base materials linked to different areas of the country and the pattern and lettering that is so typical all over Japan.

My little collection of dolls has been building slowly and today was a special day. For years there was a Hakata porcelain doll in my childhood home, I’m not sure when or where he was bought, but I think dad bought him home from one of his trips and I loved him. And, like my Japanese Doll he became misplaced, or given away and now no one can remember what happened to him. But I’ve been searching.

Yesterday I found a Hakata boy doll in the UK on eBay, so similar to the one from my childhood that I instantly fell in love and today I went and fetched him from Tipton. He was being sold to raise funds for Birmingham Dogs home. He’s now in my sitting room and I’ve been smiling all day.

So, today’s images are of my collection of Japanese Dolls.