15th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest The American Experience
Untitled

"I can cry in front of them, I can tell them my secrets. I buy them things and they calm me down. I just feel comfortable around them,” says twenty-six year old Lisa Schalm as she poses for a portrait inside of her bedroom in Brockport, New York, on Oct. 11, 2017. Lisa suffers from depression, anxiety, and borderline personality disorder and said that these reborn dolls are the only solution to help calm her symptoms. A reborn doll is a manufactured skin doll that has been transformed by an artist to resemble a human infant with as much realism as possible.

This photo is a finalist in the American Experience category of our 15th Annual Photo Contest. See all 60 finalists here.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 10.2017
Date Uploaded: 11.2017
Photo Location: Brockport, New York, United States of America
Camera: NIKON D810
Copyright: © Brittainy Newman
Awards
Photo of the Day: 11.11.17
Editor's Pick
Finalist