06/18/2026
Join us for Re-Animated on Saturday June 20th for a group exhibition exploring dolls and the human form. Opening reception is free and open to the public, running from 2-4pm
We attribute life to inanimate objects all the time, it's part of human nature. Anthropomorphism is the ascribing of human personality, appearance, conduct, cognition, or other attributes to non-human entities and it is observed across cultures and time. But of all the things we decide to imbue with life, no figure is easier to animate than a doll. We see ourselves in these objects, or sometimes we don't, but they are undeniably a part of childhood no matter the role they play. Little boys told not to play with baby dolls, black children frustrated by endless aisles of white dolls, look-a-like American girl dolls, over commercialized Barbies: dolls are ubiquitous and oftentimes controversial.
We dress them, cradle them, brush their hair, bathe them– dolls become the ultimate companion and become imbued with life by our own hands. Oftentimes these companions don't follow us into adulthood– they remain in a box in an attic, grow dust, decay.
In this exhibition we’ve selected artists who explore their relationship with dolls, puppets and other representations of the human form; artists in conversation around animating the inanimate, creating objects which speak to our desire for companionship.
