Heather Benning
Words by MPDClick’s Home & Interiors Editor.
Canadian sculptor Heather Benning discovered an abandoned and weather-worn house in Saskatchewan, Canada and over a period of 18 months she transformed the building from a derelict home in to a life-size dollhouse.
Heather came across the crumbling building in 2005 when she took a job as a resident artist for the community of Redvers. When she peered through the windows she saw a life-sized dollhouse, and decided to make it her main project during her time in Saskatchewan. She contacted the landowners and found out that the house had been abandoned since the late 1960s, and they agreed to donate the house to her project.
Heather wanted the interior of the house to appear the way it was when it was abandoned, but for the exterior of the property to display the passage of time. She closed the back, north-facing wall of the house with Plexi glass, showcasing the full interior. Heather wanted the house to be inaccessible, just as a real dollhouse is inaccessible because of the scale, but she also wanted the house to remain tomb-like, to encapsulate a time and lifestyle that no longer exists, and will never exist again.
The house took Heather and her friends 18 months on and off to complete before she finally unveiled the work to the public. The furnishings were largely acquired from local garage sales, auctions and thrift stores as well as donations from the community.
‘The Dollhouse‘ is currently being represented by The Telephonebooth Gallery in Toronto.
Image source: inhabitat.com
-B.C
