Two doll pals invite each other to a very proper tea party – but their hair is just too messy. Brushing doesn’t do the trick. What would work? They imagine other solutions – visiting a birdbath or a car wash . . . and then – A-HA! – the winner: a trip to the beauty parlor where hijinks ensue. In the end, freshly coiffed and very fancy, the dolls finally sit down to enjoy their tea party.
From the author: In 2008, I was photographing old dolls using a medium-format camera. The dolls all had such soulful eyes, I was certain that they were trying to tell me their stories. I began prowling secondhand stores and stoop sales, collecting all kinds of dolls to photograph. The more expressive, the better; I particularly loved the ones that were no longer pristine, the ones that had been drawn on, or had their hair cut, or wore mismatched or handmade clothes. Growing up, I loved Dare Wright books, so I decided to re-interpret those photographic children’s books for today’s new readers. Messy Hair is the first of several photo-driven books to come.
Gretchen Grace, an artist and designer with a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design, was an Art Director for the Children’s Television Workshop (now Sesame Workshop). Mother of two kids, she lives with her family, including a puppy named Honey who has very messy hair, in Brooklyn, NY. You can see more of Gretchen’s work at: gretchengrace.com