I Create Hyper-Realistic, Life-Sized Articulated People To Keep Me Company In The “Middle Of Nowhere”

Living out in "very rural" Manitoba, Canada, I don't have access to all the materials I wish I had, so over the years, I learned to innovate, recycle, and find ways to use what was available around me... pen tubes for finger bones, coffee grounds for dark whiskers, animal hair for eyelashes and eyebrows, common household items for structural parts like electrical wire.

These structures are covered in stuffing and fabric and features are "sewn into submission" to create the lifelike faces you see here. I use glass eyes and special wigs and often create the costumes to complete the character.

Over the decades, I have recreated the likenesses of well-known characters like John Lennon, Marilyn Monroe, Blondie, various Presidents, Charlie Chaplin, and many others. My works have been featured in galleries and on TV, store displays, and museums—including traveling with the Phantom V Rolls Royce belonging to John Lennon.

Presently I'm working in my studio in rural Canada on various new ideas using the human form in my sculptures. Therefore, I'm about to premiere my largest and most grand work to date: "Oceana - the Mermaid Queen," a metal scale-clad beauty reclining atop a pile of handmade and vintage jewelry and real treasures.

I'm also creating wall-hung artwork using the same fabric medium to create humanoid as well as abstract artworks for those who have wall space, but aren't comfortable having a "guest" in the house.

Holidays are fun around the studio. Halloween has been a favorite event in past years as I would put all of my characters to work in different displays and events. Christmas has also been a busy time and has led me to create over 35 different varieties of Santa Claus or Father Christmas as well as elves, Angels, and more!