Feminist vs. Reactive Barbie – Why Mattel’s Doll Hides Multiple Identities

It was Barbie as feminist as we thought? A year after the release of the film directed by her Greta Gerwigwhich became the highest-grossing production in Warner Studios history and the biggest world premiere of 2023, an exhibition in London challenges what we saw.

This new exhibition at the Design Museum, launched on the occasion of Barbie’s 65th anniversary and which you can visit until February 2025, offers a historical journey through 250 objects and dolls, but also gives us a lot of useful information. “The relationship between her Barbie and feminism is full of nuances”says the exhibition’s curator, Danielle Thom, to “El Pais”.

“From the beginning, there were elements of feminism in her story. For example, Barbie worked and made it clear, through her houses and cars, that she was an independent woman. But, on the other hand, Mattel preferred to “promote” a certain body image and a certain racial identity above all others.”

The exhibition was organized with the cooperation of the company, which did not prevent the curator from introducing “a critical eye” to the exhibition. “Mattel has learned a lot from past mistakes, which explains where it is today”she says herself.

The exhibition opens with the original model from 1959, a young woman with an insidious look, which already reflected all the contradictions of the character. Clad in a zebra-print swimsuit, her figure appears thin, a sexist archetype with excessive make-up and a mundane lifestyle. Youthful yet mature, with a teenage ponytail and adult breasts, Barbie was an ambiguous figure. Simple and sophisticated, suggestive and modest, it contained a multitude of identities from the start. Even so, it is undeniably designed as an object of desire. Inspired by the German Bild Lilli doll.

One of the “keys” to her success – Mattel sold 300,000 dolls in one year – was her style, which also left no room for doubt. Girls could dress her up as a bride, a member of a club, in an evening dress or in a nightgown. She had jobs from the beginning, but only as a dancer, nurse, flight attendant, cheerleader or model.

Created in 1961, Ken was introduced as “Barbie’s boyfriend,” which is not to say that he was a subordinate or ridiculous figure, as Gerwig suggested. A mere fiction? Not exactly: Mattel’s strategy has always been to make her a role model, an avatar that little girls can project themselves into. “I’ll make it look like it’s you”, sang a little girl in her first commercial, which aired during the Mickey Mouse Club show. Her mission was to “reassure parents by encouraging girls to adopt good personal care habits.”

Pediatric mental health specialist Dr. Alan F. Leveton expressed concern about Barbie’s impact on girls and boys as early as 1977. “They are introduced to a premature and joyless sexuality, to fantasies of seduction and ostentatious consumption”he wrote in his book “The Threat of Barbie Dolls.”

It is worth noting that a few days ago, Mattel launched the first blind doll. The American toy maker said the new Barbie was created so that children who are blind or visually impaired feel represented in society. The company is also launching the first black Barbie with Down syndrome as a white doll was released in last year’s line.