The Semantic Tumbler Toy

Four tumbler dolls in a row. “The Semantic Tumbler Toy”, 87 × 67 cm on canvas, mixed media.

The brunette stands straight. She is the one with a core: knock her and she comes back.

The redhead has a diamond in her tooth. Nerve, risk, an appetite for going where safety ends.

The blonde winks and sticks her tongue out. No seriousness at all, full freedom to play the fool.

The fourth is small and dark, with a moustache and joined eyebrows, and several bloodlines in her face. For me that is Russia: faces that crossed once, mixed, and became one common face.

Russian ornament runs across their bellies. Over the top, in gold, “Lyubo dorogo”. Hard, and still dear. Beautiful, and therefore costly.

A tumbler doll cannot be knocked down for good. The weight sits in her base. Push as long as you like, she stands up again on her own.

Hang it in a child's room, or in a study where you need reminding more often.