Name: Lou-Ellen
Made by and When: Gloria Young (Rone), Massa’s Servants Collectibles, 2006
Material: Gessoed and painted cloth, decorative beaded joints
Marks: GY / 2006 (on the back of the doll’s right leg)
Height: 17 inches
Hair/Eyes/Mouth: Synthetic hand-applied auburn wig/painted green side-glancing eyes/closed mouth
Clothes: Sewn-on, aged floral-print blouse, green skirt with matching vest, floral panties, red necklace; painted-on white socks and black shoes; cloisonné beads used for elbow and knee joints; carries a basket of black berries
Other: Lou-Ellen is from the artist’s “Lil’ Color’d Girls” series. Her story card explains that after Lou-Ellen complained to her mother that children made fun of her dark complexion, her mother reassured her that her complexion is beautiful by saying, “The blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice.”
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