Life as a doll
One evening at a dinner with friends, I noticed a cardboard box on a shelf — inside it was one of the first Barbies ever produced.
Her hair was tied in a ponytail. She had long legs, red-painted fingernails and toenails, and the Barbie logo on her bottom. I was fascinated and decided to emphasize these features by trying to transform her, through photography, into a real woman — sometimes even provocative and sensual.
Barbie was born in 1959 from an idea by Ruth Handler, who, after watching her daughter Barbara play with paper dolls and give them adult roles, realized the potential of a doll with an adult appearance — rather than a baby-like one, as had been the standard until then. She shared the idea with her husband Elliott Handler, co-founder of the toy company Mattel. At first, her husband wasn’t very convinced, but knowing that a similar doll — Bild Lilli — was being sold in Germany, he decided to embark on this new venture.
Initially manufactured in Japan and later in the United States, 350,000 dolls were sold in the very first year. Over the years, Barbie’s hairstyles and fashion choices have always followed the style trends of the times.
