The workshop opens new interpretations on the work of the poet and children’s writer Agniya Lvovna Barto (1906–1981). Dolls sing our favorite songs, tell our favorite recipes, and speak the words we need to hear the most. Inviting participants to create the inclusive cardboard dolls we would have loved during our childhood, Madina Joldybek offers a feminist perspective on Soviet children’s poetry.

Madina Joldybek, aka madikendraws, is a multidisciplinary artist born and raised in Kazakhstan and currently based in London. Her practice addresses questions of gender inequality, multi-faceted motherhood, migration, authoritarian regimes, among others.