Born Again: The Art & Healing Of Reborn Dolls

Have you ever seen Reborn Babies?

They’re these hyper-realistic-looking dolls that are collected for their extraordinary artistic accuracy… And they’re also used therapeutically for people who suffer from anxiety and depression.

Hear from a woman who uses them for just that reason. Plus, meet a painter who makes them look so real, a researcher on the Reborn community and culture, and a photographer who made these dolls a major part of her work.

This episode originally aired on September 24, 2021. 

GUESTS:

• Emilie St-Hilaire is a multidisciplinary artist and doctoral candidate in the Humanities PhD program at Concordia. She studies lifelike dolls and the motivations of their collectors, rethinking non-human companionship
• Irene Golden is a Reborn artist from Spain, and the owner of Latidos Reborn
• Jamie Diamond of New York City features Reborn Babies in her series of photographs, "I Promise To Be A Good Mother" and "Mother Love", and is a collector herself
• Patrizia Bartolomei of Perth, Australia, runs the Facebook group, "My Therapy Reborn Group". She's used Reborn Babies as therapy babies since 2016

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