Plush!

Definition

Plush : an artwork created by joining fabric to make a design and then stuffing that design with a filler such as beans, pellets, sawdust, paper, fabric, or polyfil.

Earliest Plush

Originally, anyone and everyone handmade small toys for children using scrap fabrics and animal skins.

These are often called “rag dolls.”

Lakota Native American doll

Earliest Plush

Originally, anyone and everyone made small toys for children using scrap fabrics and animal skins.

These are often called “rag dolls.”

Early American rag doll

1st Manufactured Plush

-Steiff Company founded in 1880-Founder Margaret Steiff was wheelchair-bound and made them for fun.-1st stuffed animal was a bear

Steiff Bear

2nd Manufactured Plush

-Steiff Company made animals based on Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter

- 2nd stuffed animal was “Peter Rabbit”

Peter Rabbit

Raggedy Ann and Andy

-Made during World War I in early 1900s

-People had less money, and these dolls incorporated cheaper materials

Sock Monkey

-Made from cheap materials (socks!)

-Made during the American Great Depression of the 1930s

-could be purchased or handmade

1940s-70s-Advent of plastic meant less plush toys-Plastic was heavily used to make dolls too. -Most popular company was “Wendy Boston Playsafe Toys”

Plush Art?!-During the 1950s and 1960s Pop Artists made plush-The most famous is Claes Oldenburg’s “Floor Cake”

Cabbage Patch Dolls

-Made from fabric and plastic

-Debuted in the 1980s

-Some of the first racially diverse (and not racist) dolls in America

-Huge craze to buy the dolls; they were hard to find!

Beanie Babies-Made from synthetic fabric and plastic pellets

-Debuted in the 1990s

-They were highly collectible.

-People would brag about their huge collections!

Modern Plush Movement• In the late 1990’s/early 2000’s artists became

more interested in so-called “low-brow” arts– Crafts– Sewing– Comic books– ‘zines– Clothing– Plush!

Modern Plush• Modern artists see plush

as an art form AND a toy. • They make more than

“stuffed animals”

• They are influenced by the Japanese term/art called “kawaii” or “cute”

Kawaii guardrail in Japan

Heidi Kearney• Owns a business called “My Paper Crane,” wherein

she makes handmade plush

Heidi Kearney• Owns a business

called “My Paper Crane,” wherein

she makes handmade plush

Felicia of Fluffy Flowers• Owns a business called “Fluffy Flowers”

wherein she sells handmade plush

Mimi Kirchner

Your Project

1. Brainstorm an idea for a plush creation2. You can:

1. Make a Kawaii food2. Make a monster3. Come up with your own idea (check w/ Ms. Z.!)

Let’s Get Inspired!

To-Do1. Sketch out an idea

(kawaii food, monster, etc.)

2. Re-draw your sketch as a pattern.

1. Draw a little bit bigger than you want your piece to be

2. Make a pattern for each piece of fabric you will need to cut

To-Do1. Re-draw your sketch as

a pattern.2. Trace your pattern on

to felt3. Cut out your felt

Warm Up

1. Come in2. Get your bag/kit3. Sit in your assigned seat