The exquisite artworks and miniature figures of Galia Bazylko have become legendary in miniature and doll collecting worlds over the past 30 years....her work may be found in international private collections and museums worldwide, including the Naples Museum of Art and George Washington's Mount Vernon. She has written over 35 articles for miniature and doll publications and has been featured in many books and magazines including Contemporary Doll, Aloha, and Miniature Collector. In 1980 she was elected to fellowship in the International Guild of Miniature Artisans (IGMA). Several of her major works are now on display in the Rosalie Whyel Museum of Doll Art, including the 1"-1' scale 17th Century Russian Orthodox Cathedral which Galia built and created the entire interior for, including handpainted iconography throughout the entire setting.
Though born in Seattle, Washington, Galia's background was steeped in old-world aristocratic traditions....both her grandfathers were Russian Orthodox priests, and many family links with the Romanov regime gave her a deep sense of the beauty and lost arts and graces of former times. Galia was also gifted with wonderfully vibrant and culturally aware parents, who nurtured extensive learning and experiences in the arts and history from her earliest childhood, as well as extraordinary artistic talent within the family heritage......these combined to form the basis from which she in turn has nurtured her own branching and flowering of the many facets of art she has turned her mind and abilities to.
Artistic gifts as well as an interest in all things to do with the history of fashion and costume led to a major in Costume Studies and Textile Science at the University of Washington, where in the five year course of study Galia gained much knowledge of proper historical aspects of costume as well as an appreciation for the fine craftsmanship and construction of antique and vintage clothing. Besides her 30 year career in miniature sculpture and artwork, she has for some years actively participated in the vintage and antique clothing collecting world (known as "Countess Galina") and has a thriving secondary business in that genre with her own custom original antique-inspired hats and Victorian/Edwardian style designs at www.vintagestudio.com and newly opened www.countessgalina.com . Galia's deep love of all things beautiful has found many avenues for creative inspiration and her greatest joy is in creating works that lift the spirits of others, be it through an exquisitely crafted Victorian-era hat or a tiny jeweled miniature figure of a European king or queen.
Each of Galia's famed miniature figures is completely one of a kind, entirely hand sculpted with no molds or patterns used in construction.....her figures are astoundingly realistic though extremely tiny and precisely true to 1"-1' scale. She is very exacting as to proper historic representation in the costumes she creates for her figures and quite often the fabrics are delicately hand-painted, beaded or embroidered to duplicate the look of the full-size subject. The extraordinary aspect of this is especially evident in works such as her collection of 44 First Ladies, each one a miniature portrait figure of America's 200+ year history of Presidents' wives, relatives and ladies who served as official hostesses of the White House.....all have the most painstakingly accurate, detailed costuming in the history of miniatures and the entire exhibit is now part of the permanent collection of the Naples Museum of Art.
Galia's figures are made from a secret formula she has spent years perfecting, and they are each hand painted with countless layers of delicately applied, subtle skin tones, giving them an extraordinarily lifelike, luminous appearance. The depth of the eyes and the breathtakingly fine separate fingers of these minute sculptures have become two of Galia's most recognizable trademarks and they are but a few of the exceptional features her work has become known for worldwide. The clothing is entirely hand-stitched and Galia uses only the finest materials, most often antique or vintage, in its construction down to the undergarments and tiny shoes.
All figures are available by custom commission and the current waiting list is 12-18 months. Prices range from $1300 and up for miniature figures, to $3000-10,000 for larger and half-life-size figures with paperweight glass eyes and handsewn/gemstone-accented clothing, jewelry and/or antique and vintage silk and lace costumes. All costumes on the figures, whether miniature or half life size, are entirely HAND SEWN from start to finish, are entirely of vintage/antique/natural fiber materials--no synthetics--- and no machine sewing is used on them; all figures are completely and individually hand sculpted and there are no molds or repro materials used in any way shape or form in the creation of these pieces.
A native of Washington state, Galia now makes her home very near the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, where she finds much artistic inspiration. A single mother for twelve years, she has raised three children who are now young adults....Mark, Alexander, and Anastasia.....and she continues to pursue further heights of artistry, imagination and beauty in all its forms. Please also visit www.vintagestudio.com and www.countessgalina.com for other aspects of Galia's most exquisite artistic pursuits!
"Galia Bazylko is revered as a methodical yet soulful artist who delves into every subtle nuance of her creations......."
------------The Dollhouse Book, Stephanie Finnegan 1999
"From handpainted costumes to hand dyed silk hair, every aspect of this artist's extraordinary creations reflects her quest for perfection..........."
------------Miniature Collector, Jan/Feb 1987
"A profound sense of the romance and reality of history, which is both a birthright and an obsession, pervades her home, her personal philosophy, and every work of art she has ever produced.............."
------------Contemporary Doll Collector, Apr/May 1995
Eugene and Alexandra
