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Thoughts on Today’s Paper Doll
I love drawing pretty things like tutus, but I also wanted to draw practice clothing, because in reality many folks who dance, dance for the love of dance. They are not automatically dancing with the goal of performance before a crowd.
I have mixed feelings about ballet’s relationship with body shape, as I have said before. The stats on dancers and eating disorders are troubling. One 2003 study from the journal Psychopathology found that non-professional ballet dancers reported the highest prevalence of eating disorders (anorexia nervosa 1.8%; bulimia nervosa 2.7%; eating disorders not otherwise specified 22.1%) compared to gymnasts and bodybuilders, two other performative sports with high prevalence of eating disorders. I should add that the study looked at non-professional dancers, so I’m not saying these are the stats for people actually dancing in the National Ballet company or something.
Anyhow, I couldn’t in good conscious draw ballerina paper dolls for kids without feeling like I needed to mention the issues of body image and ballet. I try so hard not to preach on this site, but I know too many people in recovery from eating disorders, so I take that stuff really seriously.
Inspiration for Today’s Paper Doll
I don’t do a lot of mix ad match sets anymore, but given that I couldn’t fit clothing and en pointe shoes on the same pages as the dolls I drew to go with this series, I thought I would make sure to give a variety of practice clothing to be mixed and matched. If you’re paying close attention, you’ll notice the en pointe shoes duplicate. I didn’t feel like drawing the same thing over and over again.
Specific Source Images: Dancewear Solutions and International Dance Supplies were two of the sites I used to find images of dance clothing.
Learn/See More
On the Blog: More Jewels & Gemstones paper dolls & other Ballerina paper dolls
Around the Internet:Eating Disorders and Body Image Disturbances among Ballet Dancers, Gymnasium Users and Body Builders, Why Ballet Hasn’t Yet Caught Up to the Body Positivity Movement from Medium & Big Moves Dance Company: Beyond Body Positive Towards Fat Liberation
Last Thoughts
So, right now life is super crazy busy for me and I don’t see it slowing down for a while. I keep thinking- next month won’t be so bad and then next month rolls around and it is just as insane. So, thank you for your paitence as I work through everything happening in my life.
Meanwhile, don’t forget that becoming a patron means getting an extra paper doll/outfit every Friday.
I’m thinking I should also draw some non-ballet stuff. I specifically called this collection Ballet & Dancing. What other sorts of dance should I include? Leave me a suggestion in the comments.
I think great will be latin dances. You will have to think about and later design it. For example Samba, Salsa, Rumba, Pasodoble.
You can’t go wrong with the big 3: ballet, tap, & jazz. The practice clothes for them are all pretty much the same, except the shoes and you’d typically wear practice shorts with tap & jazz. Hiphop would also work, as those outfits tend to be a little less dance school formal, but still excercise clothes. This excluding performance costumes, which tend to be their own monster.
If (yes, big if) you’re willing to go a little more cultural dance, Mexican Folklorico outfits are to die for, especially Jalisco and Veracruz. Hawaiian holoku dresses also give off a more formal dress vibe, and less the stereotypical hula girl look. Even less culturally specific would probably be samba (and all ballroom by extension), especially if you go the more ballroom look and less Carnival.
Of course, I fell like if you hit the big 3, it will be more than enough.
I think I put way too much thought into this.