Vintage Sasha Dolls by Sasha Morgenthaler

Vintage Sasha Dolls by Sasha Morgenthaler
Sasha dolls were created by Sasha Morgenthaler, who lived from 1893 to 1975, in Switzerland. Morgenthaler wanted her dolls to have expressions capable of interpretation by their young owners. The dolls were consciously neither happy nor sad, rather having a look that was more wistful, that could capture many moods. The faces were originally hand-painted by the artist herself, with bold abstract strokes - a style that was suggestive, not precise.
Morgenthaler’s vision was to create dolls that represented the spirit of children of all races and cultures, during their age of innocence. A protégé of Paul Klee, she was active in European artistic and social movements. From the 1940s until her death, Sasha worked in her studio to create individual 20 inch tall dolls … of cloth, gypsum, and plastic. These dolls are museum-quality works of art.
But these original dolls were too expensive for most families. Morgenthaler’s dream was to make a less costly doll with universal appeal. In the mid 1960s she developed the 16-inch tall vinyl playdolls, manufactured in Germany and England, that became so popular around the world. Their skin colorings were chosen to represent all the children of the world, and they have individually hand-painted faces with receptive expressions, to reflect whatever mood its child will give it.
In 1976, Sasha Morgenthaler's artistic estate was endowed to the City of Zurich. This estate, of around 120 dolls and animals, is presented on a bespoke website sashamorgenthal... (in both German and English languages). This is a fascinating overview of Morgenthaler's life's work. Anyone who is interested in Sasha dolls will be enthralled by this collection.