A Garden of Virtues

   

Shelley and Ophelia posed on a rare overcast morning in River Legacy Park. It was wild and overgrown, and we were literally hidden by the tall grass around us. Ophelia is wearing her "Kathleen" wig from Global Dolls and brown acrylic eyes. Shelley's wearing a default Tender Zen wig from Dream of Doll and his blue glass eyes. A pair of lovers, forever and ever, in a Texas grassland wilderness.

It was a dark and stormy night that Ophelia ventured to the library to continue reading her favorite story, "Beauty and the Beast." She became so absorbed in the story that she scarcely noticed how the fire had died down, and how late it had become. When she had finished the story, she gave a deep sigh. "How I wish I could be loved that way. I would not mind a man who had a monstrous form." Ophelia posed for a proper portrait. Someone kindly offered this dress to Ophelia at my first doll meet-up, noting that Ophelia looked like she loved Victorian things. This dress remains Ophelia's favorite still.

These are images from the omukae ceremony that I held for Ophelia and Shelley, my Dream of Doll Tender Bee-a and Too, on December 6, 2006, close to their second birthday. The omukae, or welcoming, ceremony is a ceremony designed by the ball-jointed doll company Volks to introduce new Volks dolls to their owners in a special way. I learned about the ceremony by reading threads and viewing images on the site Den of Angels. From what I can tell, Volks uses music, recitation, candles, and flowers in their omukae ceremonies. I created a ceremonial photo shoot with Ophelia and Shelley using candles, evergreen branches, and tiny flowers. The photos were taken at night with artificial lighting. Taken with my Palm Treo 600. MUTABILITY. Percy Bysshe Shelley We are as clouds that veil the midnight moon; How restlessly they speed, and gleam, and quiver, Streaking the darkness radiantly!--yet soon Night closes round, and they are lost for ever: ...