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Leather Masquerade Masks handcrafted by Wendy Drolma

Welcome to Leather Masquerade Masks by mask artist Wendy Drolma of Woodstock, New York. On this website you'll find three galleries of;masks that are exceedingly comfortable to wear.Whether it's a fetish ball or;Halloween ball, theater,film, Mardi Gras, Black Tie, Burning Man or Fantasy Fest these dramatic masks can be worn in comfort and style.;

Here is a list of some of the masks you'll see in my gallery.  Satyr mask, Minotaur mask, Totem mask, Persona mask, Zahir mask, Amorpheus Mask, Jester mask, Psyche mask, Nero mask, Asteria mask, Spider mask, Dani mask, Luna mask, Laveaux mask and Bast mask.  These are just a few of the many mask styles you can choose from.  On this site I also show a collection of blindfolds in my Hide and Seek gallery and soon I will be adding silk veils to that collection.

Each mask is made of a combination of materials including leather, velvet, beads, copper and lace.  To see my work in person, please visit me at the New York Renaissance Festival in Tuxedo Park, New York or at the Mask Market in New Orleans during Mardi Gras.  Please write and join my mailing list if you'd like me to keep you posted about other shows I'm doing.

These masks are: Handmade. This includes dyeing, stitching and shaping.Unisex and completely comfortable to wear. Fully lined in an assortment of luscious velvets (exceptions to this are noted in the mask details section)

Beadwork is: Hand-strung using glass and stone beads.

About Colors: Color substitutions are easy and can be done at no additional cost. The colors that I use are featured throughout the galleries. Remember: because each mask is individually dyed, there are slight variations in hue from mask to mask.

You can choose the color velvet you'd like your mask to be lined in. They can be: Crushed Velvets (100%25 rayon) Teal, Brandy, Cardinal, Regal Blue, Black, Animal Print Velvets (100%25 cotton), Jaguar, Leopard

How to take care of your mask: Leather is pliable; therefore, care is required when handling your mask. Displaying it in your home, when it's not being worn, is an excellent idea. Hanging it properly will help the mask maintain its original shape. I've designed special hangers which show off the masks beautifully. Just let me know (on the order form) if you'd like to purchase one with your mask.

As with most dye colors, it's best not to expose to direct light. Diffuse/ambient light, over the long term, is best to maintain the original colors.

Whenever possible, you should avoid getting your mask wet. However, if it does get wet while wearing it (from sweat or rain), set it down carefully to dry in its original form. Flattening the mask out, at any time, but most especially when it's wet, will keep the mask from drying in it's original shape.

Cleaning is easy. Gently wipe away dust particles with a cloth slightly damp with water. It is not recommended that you use leather cleaning products on your mask. In most cases, the mask's surface has been sealed with a clear, semi-gloss finish and it's clarity may be negatively affected by these products. A good idea for cleaning feathers is to blow the dust off using a blow dryer.

Delivery Time:Please allow two weeks for delivery. Wholesale Inquiries are Welcome

These handmade leather masks, for wearing and display, are designed and created exclusively by Wendy Drolma of Woodstock, New York. Each decorative theatre mask is lined in luscious velvet and all are completely comfortable to wear. Great for parties and masquerade balls.

In Wendy Drolma's Unmask collection exclusive Over-The-Ear™ design used on these masks features a selection of sparkling glass and hematite beads with just the right weight to hold the mask securely in place without the need of tying it around the head.

My old website Wendy Klein Masks will redirect you to my new site.

My website Wendy Drolma Masks is where anyone can view and order handcrafted leather drama masks, ideal for Mardi Gras balls, theatre and Halloween costume parties. Stand out at a sexy fetish event, black tie masquerade, or masked wedding.

Wendy Drolma HTML page lists some of my masks and contact information.

Wendy Drolma's GuestBook Reader is the guestbook for Wendy Drolma where anyone can read comments about my masks or site.

Wendy Drolma's GuestBook is the guestbook for Wendy Drolma where anyone can add comments about my masks or site.

Wendy Drolma Masks is my personal blog about my work.

An interview with Wendy Drolma

by Derek Greenwood at Shadows Magazine.

DG: Some believe that when they don a mask, they begin to assume the persona of the mask -- perhaps as a way to escape themselves. Have you ever experienced this phenomenon yourself?

WD: When it comes to wearing one of my masks, I'm not very good at shedding my inhibitions. I feel revealed almost to the point of being naked. Maybe that's because I made them. I don't know. I had an enlightening experience, years ago, when given a full-face mask made by someone else. I put it on and was truly overcome. I felt I could do anything I wanted in terms of movement. Though I wouldn't describe it as escape. It felt more like getting in touch with something very real and exciting. This experience makes me question the use of the word "escape" when we talk about masquerading. I think the experience of escape is more connected to withholding than letting go.

This idea of the individual assuming the persona of a particular mask is explored, in detail, in a book titled "Crowds and Power" by Elias Canetti. There he states that the true mask is "something that never changes but remains permanently and unmistakenly itself, a constant in the continual flux of metamorphosis." I think the tension that's set up between this rigidity and, as Canetti puts it, man's "perpetual readiness for transformation" (as seen in our constantly changing facial expressions) is what helps us to grow.

DG: Your masks run the full range from elegant to disturbing visages that seem to be from a time hundreds of years ago. Where do you get your inspiration?

WD: Inspiration comes from the air we breathe—it's all around us. Ideas can occur at any time and so I feel it's especially important to be aware and open to what's going on around me. I may set out working with something specific in mind, that's fine -- but new thoughts form while I work. An important part of the creative process is to allow initial ideas to dissolve.

DG: How much time is invested in an original creation? I mean, once the idea has been sparked, do you begin work on it immediately, or do you stew in it for awhile?

WD: I often make a quick sketch before beginning to work. However, making a sketch can be misleading. It really comes down to working with the materials. I think this has to do with what I mentioned earlier -- there's a lot to be gone through once an idea has caught my attention. I usually make a few prototypes before a mask takes shape. After working for awhile I step back, look, and let my intuition guide me through whatever changes I feel need to be made.

DG: One can only imagine how much skill you must possess to construct these masks. Did you have any experience in leatherwork previous to working on your masks?

WD: No, I didn't. But I'm motivated to work everyday and don't mind the frustrations of trial and error. To develop skill in anything one has to stick with it through the learning process and develop vision. I was motivated by a desire to bring my artistic aspirations into my everyday work life and knew that regardless of the materials I used, I would have to be willing to work everyday. That's how I got good at it.

DG: Do you ever see yourself using any other materials in the production of a new design? Something that has been used throughout history such as clay, bronze, or wood?

WD: I've experimented with other materials but have always come back to leather. I also use feathers, metal, beads, thread, and velvet, but in my mask work those materials are not structural and I do not consider them to be what the mask is made of. Of course, that could change.

DG: Each of your masks has its own personality. Do you intentionally develop the masks to represent a personality, or do the masks just begin to take on a life of their own while being created?

WD: With the exception of a few masks from my Classic Collection (for example, the Satyr and Spider) I do not develop a mask to represent a particular personality. I think of working in that way as working backwards and, though that my be the way I have to work sometimes, I prefer working from the inside out. I believe that the mask's "personality" will take care of itself. Regardless of its finished shape, I see each mask as emerging from an urge to bring the materials I use into alignment with some sort of inexplicable harmony of line and form.

DG: Of the masks in your collection, what is the most popular with your customers? I myself love the look of the Satyr. It seems to evoke a feeling of malicious frivolity in me. The Spider mask is also extremely appealing to me, but by contrast to the Satyr, it gives me an almost mystical, yet somewhat somber feeling. Do you have a personal favorite? To wear I mean?

WD: The most popular in terms of sales would be masks from my Unmask Collection. I think the replacement of straps with beads that drape around the ears, holding the mask onto the face, is an important reason. Perhaps people don't want to be literally "tied" to a particular persona.

For myself, it's usually the newest mask I'm working on that becomes my favorite to wear. In the process of creating it, I put it on a lot. Beyond that, it's hard for me to say which is my favorite. I love each of them for what they are. Once, at a showing of my work, a woman put on one of my masks and it seemed to shimmer slightly as she wore it. This was very exciting. Aside from the magic of being in my studio creating each piece, seeing it come to life on others brings me tremendous satisfaction.

DG: When I paint, I like to listen to music. Depending on the piece that I'm working on, the sounds may range from Portishead, to old Frank Sinatra, to Tchaikovsky. Do you have any personal "rituals" or music that you use for inspiration while working?

WD: A personal ritual of mine is to keep my studio organized and free of clutter. I tend to put things back where they belong after using them. It's helpful to be able to find a tool when I need it.

I listen to all kinds of music when I work. Though, while working on a new mask, I don't like my attention diverted to song lyrics and so prefer the experimental sounds of artists like John Cage, Evelyn Glennie, and Fred Frith. I also like music that falls into the category of Ethnic Fusion. This kind of music moves well with the thoughts I'm having and I find that my ability to work is enhanced rather than interrupted.

DG: What got you started making masks? When did you realize, "this is what I want to do for a living?"

WD: A fascination with masks was an important factor in getting started. Though, I don't think it occurred to me that this is what I wanted to do for a living. In the late eighties, I was living with a man who handcrafted leather belts and sandals in our apartment in Queens, New York. This was during an intense period of searching for me. In terms of my livelihood, the thing I did for money, I was completely out of sync. Creatively speaking, I was longing to connect with a livelihood that felt true to who I was. It was with a strange mixture of desperation, persistence, and faith that I picked up a piece of leather and shaped it into a mask for the first time. I had no idea it would become a serious form of artistic expression for me.

DG: Would you, or do you, ever work on a commission basis? That is, if someone were to contact you for a one-of-a-kind mask based upon their idea, would you consider it?

WD: I would consider it.

For three years I created masks for Cirque du Soleil. During that time, I worked in my studio designing masks that were thematically related to their shows. This arrangement was good for me at the time because I wanted to break out of the isolated mold I had created for myself, and work with others. Working with Cirque taught me about collaboration and clarified the boundaries I must set in honor of my creative process.

DG: Speaking as an artist, do you enjoy working in any other disciplines, such as drawing, painting, or sculpture?

WD: I create sculpture made of materials such as paper, books, leather, thread and wire. I also write memoir. On the surface, these works are very different from my mask work. Still, I believe there's a similarity to all the work I do that, while not entirely obvious, is present and perceivable throughout. I think the similarity has to do with my relationship to materials and how, for example, I choose to construct things, how I work my way from start to finish, what threads I follow (so to speak) and the aesthetic feelings my work may arouse.

DG: What task in the mask making process do you enjoy the most?

WD: Creating a new mask is definitely my favorite part of the process. It's when I'm most in touch with what's important to me as an artist. Masks are a fascinating genre to work in because they have inherent meaning. My work naturally benefits from that. No matter how much someone might appreciate the beauty of what I've created, it's the process of transformation, of which these masks are symbols, that fill them with special meaning. It excites and inspires me to create work that connects with that potential.