What is it about the Land of the Rising Sun that so appeals to western sensibilities? The Bold Doll examines eastern influences on collecting habits…
Aneka’s 1981 UK No.1 hit pop song, Japanese Boy, instantly came to mind when I learned of this issue’s theme (Fashion Doll Quarterly magazine’s Spring 2011 theme was Rising Sun). She appeared on British BBC TV’s Top of the Pops show resplendent in black/pink two-tone bob with chopsticks topknot – and was backed by a kabuki-meets-disco dance routine by the show’s resident dance troupe, Legs & Co, decked out in black high heels, mini kimonos, and paper parasols. The dancers, however, wore ‘understated’ plain black bob wigs so as not to upstage Aneka’s double-fringed do. No wonder this song (and performance) was banned in Japan at the time, talk about racial stereotyping, not to mention cultural appropriation. There’s something to offend everyone here – judge for yourself, see the original version of Japanese Boy on YouTube.
Latterly the tune has been deemed to be acceptable in Japan, so if you prefer your pop to be more up-to-date, check out the cover version by the Japanese eurobeat girl group, Shanadoo from 2007.
Top points to the Shanadoos for great fashions, check them out online – there’s plenty of inspiration here for modern doll-dressing, whether it’s frou-frou white bondage minis, or a black PVC, lace-and-marabou combo, full-on leather kink, or even the itsy-bitsy golden bikini look. For a quite different take, have a look at what the master of camp, Julian Clary did with his Japanese Boy.
Aneka’s hair and outfit reminds me of the work of Dan Lee of Wide-Eyed Girls – with his Japanese-inspired OOAK dolls. Find Dan at www.wideeyedgirls.com – he uses genuine silks, usually Japanese tie silk sourced from a mill shop in Suffolk, England. His multi-color re-roots are inspired. If you become a big Aneka fan after seeing the video, I’m sure Dan could reproduce that signature bob for you on a Silkstone doll – and have a look at his gorgeous bespoke kimonos. Now I’ve got Japanese Boy playing permanently in my head, so we must move on to other doll thoughts.
My first inclination that I had the collector bug was when, as a kid, I convinced Mum that I needed to have the entire Peggy Nisbet National Costume dolls series. Bizarrely, they were being offered free with toilet paper – you just had to collect many, many labels and mail them in. As it turned out I ended up with only two of these dolls, Spain and Japan – there’s a limit to the amount of toilet rolls a family of four can use over one season.
Misses Japan and Spain are the only two dolls from my childhood that have survived intact. Tiny Tears got chewed by the dog (after experiments with a ballpoint pen as an early Celtic tattoo candidate), Tressy got a haircut – refuting the ‘her hair grows’ claims of the TV ads, and I never did get the much longed-for Sasha and Gregor dolls until I bought them for myself on eBay years later.
Miss Japan was easily my favorite of the Izal Medicated Nisbet dolls. All the dolls in this series were made from the same mold and given national characteristics of sorts by means of face paint. The arms moved a bit – er… that’s it – the legs were permanently posed in a one-straight, one-bent position with a jaunty raised ankle pushed out to the fore. But they were nicely balanced so they could stand unaided. The kimono was, to my childish eyes, a work of art – lined in contrasting lilac and daringly folded back to catch a glimpse of ankle. These dolls were clearly meant for display not play – the costumes were not removable, and to describe the dolls as poseable would be a huge exaggeration. The hair was a stitch ‘n’ glue combo which defied any attempts at styling. But I loved them and spent may hours if not exactly playing with them, then at least marveling at the detail of their costumes.
I must mention Marine Boy, not exactly a doll I admit – more of a cartoon series – but this was my first contact with the world of anime art, which was to have a huge impact on doll design, and on me! It was one of the first Japanese animations to be dubbed into English. The artwork seemed fresh, new, and appealing – we hadn’t seen that style of drawing before, particularly of faces. It was quite unlike the Disney and Hanna-Barbera characters we had grown up with. Of course this style is quite familiar nowadays and many doll lines have a touch of the anime about them, such as Momoko and Fashion Royalty’s Misaki, and many of the Volks BJDs have a purer form of anime face-up.
My next brush with Japanese culture in doll form was in the shape of the wonderful Lady Luminous by Takara. Much sought-after when introduced in 1988, these dolls had high production values and their outfits were exquisitely tailored. This line was aimed at the Japanese market but took off when discovered by US and European collectors.
The Lady L was noted for her life-like proportions – scaled to those of a real fashion model. Her head was modeled at one-sixth the size of the body, which follows the human form. This made Lady Luminous look much less doll-like than her contemporaries, so her head may seem a little small when you’ve been looking at other dolls. Her measurements correspond to a womanly 34” bust, 21” waist, and 34” hips, and she would be 5’8” tall. Perhaps shorter and more curvaceous than some of the super-thin catwalk models of today – but a healthier-looking size than the current obsession with size 0. She’s slim, but looks good naked and there are few dolls that showcase fashions so well.
When these dolls were first sold in Japan they were available from stockists that sold plastic models and kits for boats and airplanes, in addition to the usual doll stores. According to Takara’s research at the time, 70% of sales were to men – many male Japanese customers were interested in customizing Lady Luminous, but the market research ends there…
By complete contrast the very quirky, big-headed Pullip dolls from Japan make no attempt at proportional correctness. I realized I would never be able to afford a real Blythe doll – but then I discovered Pullip and, fickle I know, quickly forgot all about Blythe. My latest obsession is with the Roman Holiday Pullip – I already have the Breakfast at Tiffany’s version, and it seems wrong not to get another to keep her company. Saving up the pennies – there’s always another doll to buy.
On my one and only truly fantastic trip to Japan a few years ago I regret that I had not then rediscovered doll collecting at that time. I still have fond memories of the country and was surprised at how there are many cultural similarities between the British and the Japanese, possibly due to both being island races oppressed by centuries of history and rigid class structures. The importance of privacy coupled with a veneer of politeness both seemed very familiar to me. The street furniture, however, I remember less fondly – I’m 6’2″ and all of the signage seemed to have a clearance of mid forehead for me. Must take a crash hat next time… and don’t get me started on the topic of heated toilet seats.
I’m sure I missed many doll treasures in Japan last time – it didn’t even occur to me to look out for anime examples. Now we’ve moved to California a visit to Tokyo is less of an undertaking than from London. I’m already planning my next trip – so see you at the next BJD convention in Tokyo!
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