Barbie at The Design Museum: REVIEW!

Some of you might remember my scathing post about the recent Barbie film. I did however, commend them on the props and set, and I'm not sure I mentioned it but the end credits had a montage of the history of Barbie dolls through the ages, arguably the best part of the film. Well, like the film, this exhibition begins at the beginning: Barbie No.1. Iconic, resplendent, exceedingly pale, with a platinum high ponytail, graphic eye shadow, red lips, red nails, monochrome swimsuit, kitten heels. Calm, poised, sunglasses in hand. Mesmerising and transcending fashion and time. Luckily, this exhibition does not then disintegrate into a puddle of self congratulation, even as it does show the spirit of Barbie compromised for the good of society.

After all, as the exhibition coyly alludes, Barbie was inspired by a novelty German sex doll, Lilli  - a sexually provocative curvy doll which men could dress in different outfits, festoon their trucks with, joke gift, or generally see as a tool for their misogyny and superiority. How empowering then, that this was usurped by Ruth Handler, the creator of Barbie. Young girls now had the option to play with aspirational (albeit impossibly beautiful and successful) adult dolls rather than doll versions of little girls and babies. I couldn't help but wonder if by allowing Barbie to be darker, curvier, shorter, disabled, humbled, and in summary, relatable, the very essence of Barbie was eroded. As once upon a time, being a model meant one gasped in awe, and today one most likely replies, yeah I'm also a model. These unattainable achievements were once the stuff of child's play, but today we all have apps and editing tools and skills which can be learned for free online or watched and absorbed via tutorials, and every condition or mood has its own social media ambassador. One needn't play alone and ascribe role playing when one can hop online and have a reddit thread with real people... And yet, Barbie still holds her allure. Last year the film was able to ignite 'Barbiecore'; there is still a thirst for the unapologetic Dream House, pink outfits, big hair - joy in the feminine power and its ability to threaten and reduce men. 

The various iterations of Ken pale into insignificance next to the hundred Barbie dolls. Always officially no more than Barbie's boyfriend, the unspoken and seemingly denied gay identity of some Kens - particularly "earring magic Ken" who some rather persuasively insist wears a cock ring on his necklace, are no more than a side show to Barbie's world.

A world where home ownership began before it began for real life women (women in US, up until almost the mid 1970s, were still denied mortgage applications unless they were married; Barbie homes however were introduced in the 1960s.) 

BARBIE FASHION DINING ROOM

SET, 1984

BARBIE MAGICAL MANSION, 1990

BARBIE FAMILY HOUSE,1998

BARBIE DREAM FURNITURE COLLECTION, 1978

The friends, who came to include by the 1960s "Coloured Francie" and more ‘on trend’ afro haired friends into the 70s, resulted finally in the first ever Black Barbie in 1980. Perhaps some latent 'othering' with the tagline on the box, "She's black! She's beautiful! She's dynamite!" But no use to nitpick when the general direction was clearly that of progress. Culminating in an animated Barbie anti racism video in 2020 following the George Floyd murder.

The interesting thing about the Design museum, and I did have a quick look around upstairs too, is the emphasis on branding, marketing and identity. In spite of the capitulations to a changing world and a changing audience, Mattel has succeeded in keeping hold of an unmistakable Barbie heartbeat. Perhaps it's the endearingly vacant gaze of a Barbie. Never haughty, yet always confident and knowing. A certain tilt of the head, or the long neck and splayed out arms.

 

The logo has come full circle, returning to its original 1959 script.

TWIST 'N TURN BARBIE DOLL, 1967

 

BEAD BLAST BARBIE DOLL, 1997

WALK LIVELY BARBIE DOLL, 1972

FASHION QUEEN

BARBIE DOLL, 1963

BARBIE DOLL, WEARING

'REGISTERED NURSE,

1961

GUINEVERE, 1964 

CINDERELLA', 1964

My favourite. The 1964 “Little Theatre” edition came with a script book, with doll-sized theatrical costumes (available separately, naturally.)

Barbie is on at The Design Museum London until 23rd February 2025

Recommended: 9/10

Amazingly creative eye looks - that you haven't seen before!

Happy new year my dutiful readers!

My New Years' resolution is to blog more haha.

Ok I just spotted this and it is just so creative I had to share...

http://www.demilked.com/makeup-art-tal-peleg/

I've been stuck in a makeup rut, perhaps there is some way to adapt these looks just a tad...

The Best and most wearable of the Fashion Weeks' Makeup : Roundup

After going through various images from the several past Fashion Weeks, I've collected up some favourite makeup ideas and trends. Of course, being models, often the makeup is utterly minimal so us mere mortals can only sigh. But amongst the (yawn) 'natural' looks, 70s beauty resurgence (really?) and of course the obligatory smokey eyes, or the tanned glowy standard fodder, there were some exciting beauty looks.

 My absolute favourite is the simplest yet it does have something very modern about it: a very sharp cat eye winged black liner embellished with opulent glitter. The rest of the face is kept rather nude. Seen at Haider Ackermann [Paris]  "Stephane Marais, working with MAC Cosmetics, focused on models’ eyes, over which he painted dark wings speckled with black glitter, for texture and “sophistication.”

 

It worked especially well with the interesting fringe hairstyles and the monochrome.

My second favourite was the innovative gold accents at Dries Van Noten [Paris.]  I just love the gold eyebrows and hair parting! I wish this would go mainstream! Elegant and quirky (a most rare combination.)

 

Hairstylist Sam McKnight [...] fashioned on models’ heads a low side part lined with actual gold leaf. Makeup artist Peter Philips handc ut small gold-colored threads then glued from five to seven of them between the lashes on each models’ eyes.

“I could have gone for gold fake lashes and just cut them, but it was too clean,” he explained, calling the threads a bit more “live” and “vibrant.”

Models’ eyebrows were enhanced, and their eyelids got a dab of Chanel Ombre Essentielle in Ivory.

Another inventive yet almost transferable look was seen at the Anthony Vaccarello show [Paris], where Tom Pecheux used a small stencil to help craft a triangle shape over eyes. It seems to work better on some eye shapes rather than others though! I'm thinking, a good twist to a winged liner if you have hooded lids... Otherwise, it takes on a rather 'speccy' aura.

In a similar vein, makeup artist Lucia Pieroni emphasized dewy skin and dark eyes for Missoni’s show [Milan] with semi rimmed eyeliner. Eyes were rimmed in MAC Blacktrack Fluidline. “It's slightly Japanese in its essence and has a rounded-down shape," explained Pieroni. To finish, Silver Glitter eyeliner was applied with the finger over the lid and brow bone. A nude lip was finger-pressed with MAC Have a Lovely Day.

Now, we mustn't completely ignore the wealth of natural looks, for it should be acknowledged when sometimes the effect is truly dramatic. The standout for me was Oscar de la Renta [New York]. “We definitely know she has money,” said Gucci Westman when explaining the look backstage at Oscar de la Renta. Working with Revlon, Westman focused on crafting makeup that was simply pretty. For the face, Westman wanted it to appear luminous. To create the glowing canvas, she used Illuminace Cream Shadow in Not Just Nudes and Skinlights Face Illuminator in Nude. Mixing Powder Blush in Softspoken Pink and Matte Haute Pink she created a soft peachy flush on the cheeks.

The eyes were a mix of both violet and pale pink, which was placed close to the lashes and under the lid. “It has a bit of a Fifties feel,” said Westman. Finishing with a glossy lip, she mixed Super Lustrous Matte in Smoked Peach with Lip Butter in Pink Lemonade and Juicy Papaya. To top it off, she coated the lips with Super Lustrous Lip Gloss in Snow Pink. “She’s elegant and polished,” said Westman. “A little Victorian.”

It's worth noting the abundance of corals and oranges, which are always pretty, albeit predictable. There was a purple lip at Marchesa which was complimented by feathers in the hair. Galliano, Fendi and DSquared all chose bright orange lips. Makeup artist Charlotte Tilbury for MAC Cosmetics created a tropical, sun-kissed goddess at Dsquared2. Using a squared lip brush to create a refined edge, Tilbury lined lips in What a Blast lip pencil and filled in with Morange lipstick.

 Marchesa

 

DSquared

 

Fendi

 

Galliano

At Tom Ford the makeup was bland but it was fun to get a glimpse of the makeup table and spot some rogue brands including Boots Botanics and Real Techniques (anyone else chime in with your own eye spy please!) It was headed by Charlotte Tilbury.

Finally there were some breakaway trends which should be mentioned. Manish Arora and Vivienne Westwood were dependable for some novel makeup; Manish Arora with some beadwork and Vivienne Westwood with some ghoulish Halloween faces. In their ways, fairly typical.

More unexpectedly, Chanel mirrored their art gallery show theme with some very arty paint like eyes.

Inspired by a fabric in the collection that looked like a Benjamin Moore swatch card, makeup artist Peter Philips wanted to mimic the effect on the eyes. Using what he described as “finger paints” and the Chanel #21 brush, Philips painted an out-of-order rainbow of colorful brushstrokes all over the models’ eyes in lavender, red, yellow, green, pink, and blue. He even made a frame for his paintings, filling in the brows with black pencil, coating lashes in black mascara, lining the eyes top and bottom in inky black paint, and painting the nails in Chanel nail polish in Black Satin. “The black base acts like a frame, then next to that we can do all the playful colors on the eyes,” he explained. But Philips's playfulness came with rules: He and his team had to follow certain guidelines to keep the eyes from smearing or getting muddied. “The different colors don’t touch, and I won’t put more than two colors in the inner corners,” said Philips, who blotted the paints with a tissue to ensure they didn’t run. “And if I use a lot of lavender, I won’t use much green, or if I use coral, I won't do pink. I want it to contrast.” 

Rick Owens had conflicting reactions to his radical game changer. Eschewing lithe, white models, he instead chose a black sorority step show. The women looked very angry and intimidating. Opinions varied from praising the image as strong and beautiful, to ugly and aggressive. I am sure it made the audience sit up though! My feeling is to concur with this rather scathing assessment. I am instead encouraged by more prosaic evidence of inclusion, such as the news that Christian Louboutin's trademark nude shoes will be available in all sorts of skin shades. 

*Images and italicised  text taken from WWD, Allure.