Some of us have a secret. It’s a deep, dark secret, worn down to threads, tattered, with its ears half-torn and its beaded eyes dull with decades of abandonment. It’s a secret stuffed into a dusty corner of our parents’ attic, and when we come home for the holidays, we dig out this childhood relic and cradle it so dear, whispering, “Oh, Teddy, I’m so sorry. I still love you, but then life and puberty and witchhouse and everything happened and…” What? No? No, you’re weird.
For his MuchLoved series, photographer Mark Nixon has shot minimalistic portraits of some well-loved stuffed toys and collected their stories. Spotted by Laughing Squid and on view now at the Mark Nixon / STUDIO in Dublin, Ireland, here are some of plush friends loved a little too well. I mean, seriously, some of them are missing limbs and have their woolen little guts spilling out. That’s, uh, some lovin’ right there.
One Eyed Ted aka Aloysius, 55. Photo credit: Mark Nixon.
Teddy Tingley, 45. Photo credit: Mark Nixon.
Brownie, 30. Photo credit: Mark Nixon.
Flopsie, 6. Photo credit: Mark Nixon.
Gerry, 9 3/4. Photo credit: Mark Nixon.
Louis, 42. Photo credit: Mark Nixon.
Teddy, 15. Photo credit: Mark Nixon.
Teddy Moore, 43. Photo credit: Mark Nixon.
Teddy, age unkown. Photo credit: Mark Nixon.
Teddy, 51. Photo credit: Mark Nixon.