I received this email today:
“I would feel weird selling a reborn that was painted by someone else under my nursery name...”
My question to the author of the email is why?
My ethnic doll painting service is the newest idea in outsourcing! According to Forbes Magazine Business Guide, outsourcing is defined as subcontracting a process to a third-party person. Outsourcing is the smart way to make more efficient use of our time.
We as reborn artists already outsource more than we realize. We outsource for vinyl sculpts, mohair from pet goats, hand-sewn bodies, custom website design, crocheted items, auction templates, and even professional photography. Outsourcing does not make us bad people or any less of a reborn artist. It makes us smart people who put our time and energy into doing what we do best, versus trying to master someone else’s God-given knack.
Ethnic coloring is no trouble for me, but I am not sure how to achieve Caucasian coloring. So if I ever wanted to create a realistic, Caucasian doll, it would make sense for me to outsource to a Caucasian doll painting service. Why let my vanity get in the way of producing a beautiful doll for my customers? I can’t sew, so I purchase my bodies from master seamstresses. If using a sewing machine was a mandatory part of creating a reborn doll, I would have to throw in the towel.
Doll sculptors outsource all the time. Their forte lies in clay design. They can create beautiful, clay works of art, but for their silicone editions, many outsource work to mold makers, silicone pourers, hair rooters, silicone painters, and professional photographers. For their vinyl kit editions, doll sculptors outsource work to mold makers, vinyl kit manufacturers, and reborn artists who not only paint their prototype kits, but also root, dress and photograph the kits.
Each artist possesses her own set of talents, and has no reason to be ashamed of acknowledging the limits of her artistic interests. It is fun to network and share our special talents with each other. I receive daily inquiries asking how to achieve my ethnic coloring. Unfortunately, I am not much of a teacher, so the best thing I can do to assist those who inquire is offer to do it for them. That’s what my painting service is all about. It’s to assist anyone who wants to purchase a painted kit from me. Of course, the service is not for everyone, and I respect that. But I am not gullible enough to let the “haters” rain on my parade, when all I am trying to do is share the love of ethnic doll making with like-minded friends.
The bottom line is: There is nothing wrong with outsourcing. Who made the rules around what can and cannot happen when it comes to doll creation anyway? What’s important is the quality of the end result—a beautiful doll. It does not matter how we get there.
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Your response to that email was very informative and so true. We outsource already. Imagine if in our auctions/sales we were to name where we got everything from, that's a long list. I see alot of women get upset when an artist doesn't mention if another artist was involved with the making of a doll ie rooting or painting. I believe that's between the two artists who contributed to the doll whether that is disclosed or not. Too many people getting involved in things that don't concern them.
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