Back

The Dollhouse

Many people have dwelled inside this Victorian home since the century it was built.
I am just one of many for whom this place has carried significance.

You have survived all of your worst days...

TW: creepy dolls, creepy house!


A blurry photo of a large, high-quality dollhouse with light blue siding, an orange roof, and a spacious white porch
A house within a house
The camera creeps into the dollhouse's window, peering into a realistic miniature bed, fireplace, and vanity
Peep into the mirror world
A photo with four Chinese dolls in the foreground. Their red silk gowns, embellished with gold thread, glitter from the flash. Their faces are pale and highly stylized, with dark almond-shaped eyes and tiny, heart-shaped pink mouths. Floral wallpaper can be seen in the background, as well as some other decorous clutter. One is a sticker that says 'Fighting hate, teaching tolerance.'
May you live in interesting times
Two pretty dolls stand against a bright blue wall, and other decorous clutter falls by their side, including an abandoned teddy bear. The doll to the left is a Hawaiian hula girl, with long frizzy black hair to her waist; she has a realistic face, with a red lipstick smile, and brown eyes looking to the side. To her side, there is a pale-skinned doll in a very ornate, silver-colored, silken gown, with a white veil covering her long blond braids.
Votre âme est un paysage choisi
A flower-shaped tiffany lamp glows against complete darkness. Its stained glass orange and green petals are reminiscent of a blooming lotus flower.
Arhat
A blurry photo shows three panes of stained glass in a dark house. The streetlamp outside makes them glow. Within the mostly orange panes, there is green glinting from a laurel-leaf design.
Deep in a dream
A doll with a stuffed white bunny body and a realistic human baby face is upside down on a gray carpet floor, as if it were discarded. Its vacant green eyes stare ahead blankly. By its side, there are two old books on the floor.
Some dreams are best left forgotten
This photo shows a close-up of a vintage baby doll with bright blue glass eyes, a tiny pink pouting mouth, and rosy cheeks. The baby doll is staring ahead while it sits under a plastic sheet that protects it from dust. It is wearing a white, frilly dress and bonnet, and one of its plastic arms is reaching upwards. There are realistic dimples carved into its chubby hand.
Failure to thrive
This photos shows a mass of discarded toys, including the baby doll wrapped in plastic that was shown in the previous photo. Stuffed animals cover the floor; their faces cannot be seen, except for a stuffed Miss Piggy. Her body is laying flat on its back; her green silken dress is disheveled, and you can see her white panties. She is wearing silver gloves and slippers. Many wicker baskets and a cardboard box are scattered on the floor. One basket contains old Barbie dolls from the nineties. The one in the forefront is completely naked. By that basket, on the floor, a realistic doll resembling Shirley Temple is laying on her back. Above them all, there is a table with a sparsely furnished vintage dollhouse on top of it. Some of its furniture has fallen onto the floor. Next to the dollhouse, there is a bucket containing both a gift bag and trash bag. There is a vintage radiator off to the side, against the blue wall.
Form is emptiness, emptiness is form
This photo shows a mostly empty room with blue walls and gray carpet, and three large windows with wooden panes. On the wall, there is a framed piece of blue Chinese silk, with a red circle in the center. There is an air conditioning unit on the floor, next to a dining chair. There is a black plastic table, and a frame resting against it, the photo facing away from the camera. On the table, there is a tiny hula doll and a pale Russian doll.
Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar
The room is empty except for a large wet vacuum and an air conditioning unit sitting on the varnished wood floor, as well as an old radiator against the pale yellow wall. There are no curtains on the two windows. Outside, the night is black.
Minimalism
A wooden coat hanger hangs a child-sized blue backpack, covered in light blue and pink hearts, as well as a blue gym bag, and a tiny wicker basket. To the right, there is an ornately-carved wooden bookcase full of colorful books, and a chest that resembles a treasure chest. On top of the bookcase, there appear to be more toy boxes and wicker baskets, though they are difficult to discern. On the wall, there are two framed pictures. One is a painting of a lion with a happy smile, prancing in an open field during sunset, with a simply drawn tree in the background. Presumably, it was painted by a child. To the left, there is a painting of a pale, brunette woman against a purple background. While the portrait approaches realism, her facial features are disproportionate. Her eyes are different sizes, and the pupils are crossed. Her smirking red lips are far too wide for her face. Her over-sized ear juts off of her head. The portait was described by its artist as an attempt at portraying Natalie Portman, painted when the artist was young.
A crush on Natalie Portman
Photo missing
The golden ass
A mirror selfie shows my blurry face against the reflection on a glass door. I am holding a postcard with lemons against a pink background, and I am wearing a dangling earring that appears blurry, as if in motion while the photo was taken. Behind me, there is bright green foliage. Inside the door, there is a homey white curtain kitchen curtain hanging on a window, and there is a white metal outdoor sofa frame with a leaf design.
In a new place am I still me?