Troll Doll

Troll Doll Norwegian-American Oljanna Cunneen, c.1960 Fabric, copper wire, polymer clay, wood, fur, other on hand materials Little Norway Collection, Gift of Scott & Jennifer Winner MHAHS 2015.021.0009

Oljanna Cunneen was making trolls long before the creation of Mount Horeb’s “Trollway.” Already an avid painter, storyteller, seamstress, and rosemaler, Cuneen used doll-making as one  of many art forms to celebrate her Norwegian heritage. Cunneen’s figures were typically made using a copper wire armature that was padded to create the body and limbs; she then molded and painted the clay hands and faces.  This doll is an example of her earliest work.