Tur audio Permanent collections - room 4 - the XXst Century (Post WWII)

The chronology is completed here with doll selections from the low-production Second World War years (1940 through 1948) and the flamboyant period that coincided with the first Baby-Boom (1948 through 1959). This room is where the majority of our visitors find their childhood memories.

Three main types of dolls were offered to children during this era. First came bathing dolls, made of celluloid (cellulose acetate), which can be immersed in water. Next were infants in the soft body proportions of a newborn. Finally, dolls with simplified joints (shoulders and hips, as opposed to older systems that also articulated elbows, wrists and knees) became available.

This period saw the emergence of new materials, including plastics such as polyethylene, polystyrene, PVC and latex. The generation of dolls in this room characteristically displays a dress style inspired by haute couture of the time and new common textiles like polyester and rayon.

In each of the enclosures, visitors will rediscover examples of dolls from the last great French manufacturers, such as Raynal, Bella, Gégé, Capi, Laflex, Urika and Clodrey. Specific examples include related dolls from the women’s magazine Modes & Travaux, such as the famous Françoise, Michel and Marie-Francoise so popular with collectors today.