The Tribune

By JEFFARAH GIBSON

Tribune Features Writer

jgibson@tribunemedia.net

AT FIRST glance Lorna Miller’s silicone babies look real. They have sculpted arms and legs, hair that appears to grow out of the scalp, realistic skin tones and facial expressions. These life-like qualities of her baby and child sculptures have fooled many. When this happens, the Bahamian artist’s goal is achieved - tricking the human eye.

Lorna began sculpting in 1990 after visiting a doll shop. The first sculptures she did were children. In 2000 she caught the “baby bug” and now all of her sculptures are infants.

“I have always been fascinated by the innocence and beauty of children, so to be able to realistically recreate them is pure joy to me. I knew this was something I was going to do for the rest of my life. I never took a class or read a book on how to make these dolls. I just did it.

I created a niche for myself by sculpting life-size, black babies with authentic skin tones that are unique to the black child. I then started sculpting white as well as Asian babies,” she told Tribune Arts.

Lorna’s aim is always to make her dolls look as real as possible. There were numerous instances where people mistook the sculptures for real children. Lorna bases her progress by the response she receives from viewers.

“When people first see them, some are amazed and some are scared because they look too real. One time I was invited to one of my collectors’ homes and she wanted me to bring the baby for the pastor to see. Well, I am sitting in church and the gentleman behind me came up to tell me how beautiful my baby was.

But he was concerned about the disorder she had that did not allow her to blink. He was so concerned. I told him the baby was not real. I had to say it about three times because he did not believe,” she said.

Lorna said she has one too many stories about her babies being taken for real. It is reactions from people like the man in the church that let her know she is progressing.

Like a baby in the womb, which starts off as a small embryo then grows to maturity, Lorna’s baby sculptures start off as a ball of clay.

“Most of my creations are sculpted from my imagination. I am always inspired by being a mother. My babies start out as lump of clay. They are created using a polymer clay combination. Their angora mohair is meticulously hand applied so as to look like its actually growing out of the scalp. The babies are weighed to feel just like a real newborn.

“It is my hope that my creations continue to bring joy to whoever sees and hold them. I try to capture a bit of the magic of the child,” the artist said.

Her motivation to continuously perfect her artwork comes from her four children and her husband.

Though a native of the Bahamas, none of her silicone babies were ever displayed on home soil. She lives in Tennessee which has been her home for the past 30 years. She hopes one day to display her work in a local exhibit.

Lorna introduced her first line of silicone babies in a limited edition of 30 several years back. Her dolls are available in select stores in Tennessee.

The baby doll subculture was featured on the National Geographic show Taboo, which highlights bizarre subcultures around the world. In the US, these lifelike dolls, sometimes called “reborns”, can sell for up to $4,000. Adult women collect them, change their clothes, and sometimes treat them like real babies.