The Distorted Barbie

Artist Mark Napier has created a site that displays what he calls “distorted” images of Barbie, as well as commentary on body image, body representation and Barbie herself. He writes, “Barbie is quite a loaded image. Put a Barbie next to just about anything, and meaning will rear its ugly head.” For generations of little girls, Barbie has represented the ultimate in femininity, but Napier has distorted her into everything from “Possessed Barbie” to “Kate Moss Barbie” and “Dolly Parton Barbie”—which is really not that big a distortion. The site includes Barbie facts and links to sites about every aspect of Barbie, from her history to collectors’ evaluations of the worth of her various incarnations. He also includes this bit of poetic commentary: “A body without holes. / No way in. No way out.”