Altered Barbies, or darling prolific rabbits?By Caitlin Donohue
“Gene Simmons Begs Barbie” by Lavonne Sallee from the 7th Annual Altered Barbie Exhibit
During the years in which I was easily influenced by colorful plastic and catchy commercial jingles, my parents were good feminists and most certainly did not buy me Barbie dolls. Nonetheless, Barbie dolls multiplied in my toy chest like darling, prolific rabbits. How? The fact of the matter is that The Blonde One is a part of our social milieu. Getting away from Barbie is a proposition akin to avoiding pavement or romaine lettuce; it is simply not done.
SFBG TV at Altered Barbie 2008
This brings us to the San Francisco 7th Annual Altered Barbie Exhibit, wherein local Bay Area artists have appropriated the pink high heels, the taffeta, the Corvette and permanent purple eyeshadow and made this anatomically improbable fact of life their own.
“Healing Barbie Rattle” by Lisa Hamilton
Here you will find featured artist Lavonne Sallee’s dynamic “Barbie With A Whip” and “Barbie Cut In Half,” Debbie Fimrite’s modern zeitgeist “Deaf Jewish Lesbian Barbie.” You will behold the bloodthirsty, skull-toting Hindu goddess Kali-Ma rendered in Barbie by Arabella Champaq, Toni Voelker’s fine art photos of long lost Barbies found behind the air conditioner, Kari Harvey’s Barbie head gumball machine, Margie Burke’s mummified Ken dolls gone back to their mystical indigenous roots- and oh, so much more.
The Altered Barbie Wine Tasting on Wed/23 is but one in a plastic pearl necklace of events surrounding the exhibit that extend well into the month of October. I’ll wager that it will be an excellent opportunity to break out your prettiest fuchsia prom dress and discuss your love/hate relationship with Skipper. Vinos from Crushpad and Bear Flag wineries will be provided, and we will groove to body myths turned outside in.
Altered Barbie Wine Tasting
6 p.m., free (donations welcome)
Altered Barbie show continues through October
Shotwell 50 Studios
50 Shotwell, SF
(415) 240-2202
www.alteredbarbie.com
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Comments (1)
Barbie ... rock on!
Posted by Deborah Byrd | September 24, 2009 08:15 PM