A Gothic artist has turned an entire room of her house into a “shrine” to more than 300 “creepy dolls”, as she thinks collecting “makes life so much more interesting and fun” and has spent over £19,000 on her “addictive” hobby. Victoria Grossman, 53, a single mum to Blake Grossman, 21, began collecting Barbie dolls in her 20s, and since watching the horror film, Annabelle, she “became fascinated with creepy dolls” so began collecting and creating them – she has sold more than 400 of her handmade dolls.
She owns over 300 dolls made from “porcelain with Gothic painted features”, which she hopes people think are “haunted” – her favourite frightening figurine is a hand-painted Wednesday Addams. Victoria’s dolls typically have “mysterious eyes”, Victorian style clothes and “menacing expressions”, and despite their scary appearance, her loved ones are “big fans” of her collection.
Victoria’s creations have featured in a movie, Dementia 13, after a producer approached her at a doll convention, and bought three dolls – Victoria said it was “amazing to see them on screen”. She said: “Collecting just makes life so much more interesting and fun – I could not see a life without collecting.
