Irene Szor, Horsman Doll Artist S ome dolls, even though they do not seem very significant either in material, look or value, have very interesting back stories. The two dolls here were produced by the Horsman Doll Company in the 1960s and 1970s and were designed by the same artist. The " Patchwork Kids " girl and Antony from the " Pip Squeaks " are unusual because they have their original boxes. But more importantly there is a written acknowledgement of the artist who designed them printed on their boxes: " An Irene Szor Design. " Who was Irene Szor? Born in 1924 in Poland, Irene was a holocaust survivor. She spent two years in the forests of eastern Poland hiding with a group of partisans. After the war she immigrated to the United States where she had a highly successful career designing dolls for the Horsman Doll Company, a position she held from 1957 to 1986. She passed away in July 2015. 64 SPRING 2021