Donna Sims -
   Lifetime Member

My goal is to explore creatively, to create magical inner light with humor in all my art. If my creations solicit a smile, I have accomplished that goal.

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I am a retired educator who taught in the public schools for 37 years. I hold a bachelor's degree from Texas State College for Women and a master's from the University of Denver, with majors in education and art. I am currently active in numerous art-related organizations and have held office for the Texas Association of Original Doll Artists and Northeast Area Art League.

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I began making a few dolls in 1992 for my mother, and soon, friends encouraged me to enter them into competitions, which I did, garnering awards in the professional division. At the same time, I was working heavily in ceramics and authored a column titled "Artist's Profile" in Popular Ceramics magazine. All this spurred me to take classes and explore techniques to make porcelain dolls. This wasn't enough to satisfy my "creative taste buds" and thirst for more knowledge, so I took seminars with well-known doll and fiber artists to learn methods and explore varied mediums.

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My personal goal in doll making is to express the creative images in my mind through any medium I choose. I have devised a method of using leather in costuming that is a modification of the "Cuir Bouilli," an ancient way of treating leather through soaking, stretching, molding, and dyeing.

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I returned to fine arts and entered professional divisions at numerous shows, where my juried entries have won awards. These awards have been Best of Division, First, Second, Third, and Honorable Mention with cash awards, plaques, and certificates. My dolls have appeared in various doll publications and in several festivals, museums, galleries, and libraries.