Perm Artisan Quits Corporate Life to Craft Collector Dolls

Perm artisan Yulia Motrich creates unique author dolls and sells them not only in Russia but also abroad. Yulia was a true businesswoman, and her fascination with dolls began with a master class and grew into a profession. We noticed Yulia«s works at the art space of the Perm Exhibition Center — where until mid-December the author doll exhibition »Magic of Fairy Tales« (0+) is taking place. The author»s card stated: «I studied a lot and worked a lot, including in managerial positions in large companies, until one day I tried to make something with my own hands.» We were interested in this business card and spoke with Yulia about her creative path, the complexities of doll making, foreign orders, and also found out why she doesn«t travel to exhibitions in other cities.

When the girl wanted to go to art school, her parents were against it, so she focused on exact sciences and studies in general. Already in high school, Yulia studied to be an accountant by correspondence, and then moved to Perm to study to become a doctor. The girl entered the medical academy in the preventive medicine faculty, dreamed of becoming a surgeon or pathologist, which required six years of study, then retraining, and an internship… In her final year, Yulia started working as an employee and eventually realized that at the time, that was her path.

«I Wanted to Switch»

After some time, Yulia got a second degree, graduating from the Higher School of Economics with a specialization in Management.

— I worked in large federal companies, where I had many people under my supervision, was involved in business, and built a career, — says the heroine.

Yulia got married and went on maternity leave. Then she realized she wanted to do something besides household chores.

— I wanted to switch because it was hard to combine raising children and housework after so many years of work, — says Motrich. — A vacuum formed.

About 11 years ago, Yulia came to the «Art Perm» exhibition and saw author dolls — and then realized it was interesting and she could try making them with her own hands. She attended a master class by doll maker Anna Zuyeva — at the time, the artist still lived in Perm.

At the same time, according to the artisan, she created her first works by forcing herself. Back then, Yulia spent time from morning until late evening caring for her children, and when they went to bed, she went to the kitchen and made dolls. In the mornings, she had to get up early and dive back into child-rearing.

On Attention to Detail

Now doll crafting is an integral part of Yulia Motrich«s life; she always has some character in progress. They are all different, although people often tell the Perm woman that they see the master»s hand, and the dolls are similar.

Yulia«s works have many small details, whether stitches, ruffles, flowers, or embroidery on clothing. She says she adores detailing dolls — this activity is pure pleasure for her. The artisan makes all dolls completely by herself, except for one detail — glass eyes, which she buys ready-made.

— Creating one doll is a huge effort: usually the process takes from two to three months — not one or two hours a day, but really regular, multi-hour work, — shares Yulia with 59.RU. — I have many details — for example, I often decorate dolls with beads. I am a perfectionist — I try to do everything very high-quality and as ideally as possible. When a doll is perfect and beautiful for me, only then do I finish the work.

The costumes in Yulia«s works deserve special attention: fabrics with such patterns are almost impossible to find, and she creates the ornaments herself. The dresses and costumes on the dolls consist of many layers, and on them, the artisan embroiders patterns, sews silk ribbons with tiny stitches, and selects combinations.

On Clients from Other Countries and the Impossibility of Repeating Dolls

Yulia Motrich sells dolls to clients from Russia and other countries. From time to time, she accepts orders for her products and always tells the client that she cannot completely repeat a doll, but will make it in a similar style. For example, she might use different buttons on the costume or choose a different dress color. The artisan declines requests to exactly repeat an existing doll.

— I can make something similar if it«s close to me at the moment. Sometimes it happens that you just don»t want to make a certain image, — explains Yulia to 59.RU journalist. — I am direct and honest about it, saying I won«t take the order because it»s not interesting. First and foremost, I imagine that I«m making the doll for myself.

Yulia«s dolls have been bought by collectors from the USA, the Netherlands, France, Germany, and Sweden. Most often, fairy-tale characters were ordered by Americans. At one time, the artisan collaborated with a private gallery in California — she sent them dolls, and they sold them to collectors. Soon after the start of the special military operation, contact with foreign collectors was interrupted due to delivery difficulties. Now Yulia has clients from China, South Korea, and Russia.

Sometimes buyers order several dolls from Yulia — they find their type and «keep watch» for when the artisan has new works. They ask her to show what the new doll will be like, try to arrange it in advance, and wait.

On the Meticulous and Long Process of Making Dolls

Yulia only makes one doll at a time from start to finish — the work takes two to three months, depending on the doll«s size. On average, each finished figure is from 50 centimeters to one meter tall (about 1.6 to 3.3 feet), with less tall dolls taking less time.

— I also have voluminous, large works or ones with grand ideas. For example, I finished making «The Princess and the Pea» the day before yesterday. First, the idea was born, and then I thought through the technical part — first, I tried for a long time to make the doll «sit» on many pillows, and then I sewed the pillows for a long time. I sewed a lot by hand — every ribbon, circle, and bead, — says Yulia to 59.RU.

Sometimes new ideas come to the artisan completely unexpectedly.

— Once I saw a painting by Mikhail Vrubel in my daughter«s Russian language textbook when we were doing homework together, — and so the Swan Princess appeared, — continues Yulia. — Then I thought: »What a wonder, I need to make such a doll too!«. She is different from others: I made her in the Russian style with a kokoshnik headdress. I made her for a very long time, because the dress required a huge amount of fabric — about five meters (over 16 feet).

At the «Magic of Fairy Tales» exhibition, the Alice doll catches the eye — it reminds viewers of Lewis Carroll«s fairy tale »Alice in Wonderland.« But in fact, this work is inspired by an unusual image of supermodel Natalia Vodianova.

— Once I was scrolling through social media and saw a photoshoot of Natalia Vodianova — in the shots, she posed for the famous photographer Annie Leibovitz for American Vogue. In the photo, Natasha is sitting in a house with her head slightly bent, in such an uncomfortable pose, and the room is filled with things. I thought: «I have to make this doll, I can»t resist!«, — recalls Yulia. — I had so many doubts and fears because one thing is a flat photograph, and another is making a three-dimensional doll model in a house. I kept worrying that the face wouldn»t be visible or she would lie in such a way that you«d have to peek into the house.

— First, I ordered this house from a workshop and cut it out together with the craftsmen. Then I tried it with the doll — it was supposed to turn out so that Alice bent her head and it was cramped in the house, — shares Yulia with 59.RU. — We made the house, the doll, and I realized she had plenty of space in it, meaning there was no effect of tightness. When I made the doll, I went back to the master to reduce the height of the house. We made an additional ceiling so it felt like the house was about to fall apart because Alice is growing and bumping her head against it.

Doubts tormented the artisan until the very end, but at the very end, she realized she had managed to implement her idea as she wanted.

— Any creative process requires immense labor and knowledge. Of course, inspiration is important, but it doesn«t come from somewhere above, like a divine gift, it doesn»t obey human will, — believes Yulia. — I think everyone knows that sometimes you just need to sit down and start doing, and then inspiration might come. You set yourself some goal and definitely achieve it, and then you«re proud of yourself and think: »How great, how awesome, that I managed this!«.

Our interviewee notes that her creativity «grows» along with her. Everything happening in Yulia«s life is reflected in her dolls. She admits that now she makes fairy-tale characters, and when the children grow up, she might create more adult heroes.

— My main activity is being a mother, and dolls are already a professional hobby. I can«t yet call myself a doll artist, but I can say I do it professionally, — tells 59.RU Yulia. — My family are my main fans and appreciators of creativity, they treat everything I do with great respect.

On Exhibitions and Master Classes

Some Perm doll makers conduct master classes, but Yulia believes she hasn«t »grown up« to passing on professional knowledge yet. However, she doesn»t rule out that someday in the future she might decide to do it — people are already interested in whether they can attend her classes. She also doesn«t participate in large exhibitions in other cities.

— It«s huge physical labor — to transport my large works and arrange them at the venue. I worry about the safety of the dolls and their delivery, so I don»t see the point. I can sell my dolls anyway, and I have no goal of building a name for myself, — says Yulia.

Earlier, we told about another Perm artisan: Natalia Kryzhanovskaya makes Christmas tree ornaments from cotton wool and paints them by hand.