Wayne Stuart
Nilson
February
2,1955 - February 10, 2023
Wayne Stuart
Nilson was a curator of art, fashion, design and an avid collector. Wayne loved
fashion from 1940’s through the 1960’s including all the great designers, but was especially
fond of Christian Dior and the “Bar Suit”.
Wayne started collecting dolls while working as manager of a Barnes and Noble book store. He was stripping magazine covers for vendor credit when he happened upon an advertisement for a new doll; Gene by Mel Odom. Wayne was a fan and familiar with Mel’s work as an accomplished illustrator. He wondered if it could be the same Mel Odom? As they say, the rest is history.
On a lunch break, Wayne drove to the All Dolled Up doll store to take a look at the Gene doll in person. He left with Premier, Red Venus and Pin Up. Wayne followed Gene’s manufacturing journey from Ashton-Drake through Jamie Show.
Wayne attended his first Gene convention held in Cherry Hill, New Jersey in 1997. He will forever be remembered for the gladiator costume he wore at the event.
Wayne was a self taught seamster. He entered many design competitions and auctions at the Gene conventions. At one event, his auction doll was won by the wife of Integrity Toys owner, Percy Newsum. At another convention Wayne was approached by Frank Rotondo from Ashton-Drake Galleries. They liked Wayne’s competition doll so much they asked him to join the Dream Team and become an Ashton-Drake designer. Wayne designed two Gene outfits for Ashton-Drake; “It Happened in Monterey” from 2002 and "A Touch of Hospitality" in 2004.
Wayne even had a fashion house of his own. Wayne sewed and sold under the House of Dumont. Even the throwaways, that were tossed in the garbage for not meeting the Wayne Nilson standard of perfection, were sought after by many Gene collectors.
Not only was Wayne a couture fashion designer, he was a repaint and re-root artist as well. He loved to play with his collection. He had no problem removing heads to transplant on to other bodies or installing glass eyes into doll heads.
Wayne loved going to see haute couture and doll exhibitions across the country. His favorite exhibit was in Nashville for "The Golden Age of Couture" exhibition organized by London's Victoria and Albert Museum. He spent close to 6 hours taking it all in.
Another highlight of Wayne’s doll collecting journey was going to the Maryhill museum's "Theatre de la Mode" exhibit in Goldendale, Washington. The current exhibit had already been taken down for rotation, but the curator of the museum gave Wayne a private tour. They handed Wayne white gloves and said "what outfit do you want to see and handle?" Wayne’s mouth is wide open in each and every picture.
For Wayne, doll collecting was more than just a hobby and passion, it was about the valued doll friends that he made at events over the years.
Wayne started with Gene, but he collected a wide array of dolls. Here is a sampling of his vast collection: Gene, Barbie, Fashion Royalty, Poppy Parker, BJDs, Superdoll, Tonner, Dolikin, Ellowyn, Bishonenhouse, JamieShow, GlamourOz, Alex, CED, Miss Seventeen, Hong Kong Lilly, Mitzi, Adonis, Franklin Mint and there might even be others.
Now we invite you to take a look at the incredible Wayne Stuart Nilson couture fashion doll collection. We hope you revel in the collection as much as Wayne enjoyed gathering and curating it all.
- Bennett Mazor
