14 DAY TRIAL // Studies have shown that dolls as unrealistic in proportions as Mattel’s legendary Barbie alter girls’ body image by telling them that this is the ideal of body they should aspire to, which, in turn, may lead to unhealthy eating habits in the future. As far as Vice President of Design at Mattel Kim Culmone is concerned, that doesn’t happen.
Speaking with FastCoDesign, he defends Barbie’s totally unrealistic proportions by saying that the doll was never meant to be a reflection of a real-life woman: Barbie is just a doll who has the dimensions needed to make the clothes she wears more practical.
Culmone stresses that Barbie’s body isn’t this impossibly tiny because it’s sticking to the skinny ideal, but because it’s practical for it to be this way. Otherwise, girls would not be able to change her clothes as often as they do.
“Barbie’s body was never designed to be realistic. She was designed for girls to easily dress and undress. And she’s had many bodies over the years, ones that are poseable, ones that are cut for princess cuts, ones that are more realistic,” Culmone says.
“It’s primarily the 11.5-inch fashion doll size we change over time, depending on the needs of the product. There are some that her legs don’t even bend. There are some that her arms are straight. Primarily it’s for function for the little girl, for real life fabrics to be able to be turned and sewn, and have the outfit still fall properly on her body,” the Vice President continues.
Throughout the years, but more seriously in recent ones, Mattel has come under a lot of fire for the proportions on the Barbie doll, which include a very small waistline, feet that would not support the weight of the body, a long neck that would snap under the weight of the head, big breasts, no hips, long arms, and weird facial features, like oversized eyes and a minuscule mouth.
Just recently, for instance, Mattel released a Jennifer Lopez Barbie that has nothing in common with the singer except the gorgeous hair and a bodysuit JLo made famous during one of her most popular performances. The doll is as skinny as all other Barbies, which raised the question of why it was called Jennifer Lopez if it didn’t have at least some of her famous curves.
This, according to Culmone, is necessary because it would be impractical for Barbie to have any other type of figure.
“You do! Because if you’re going to take a fabric that’s made for us, and turn a seam for a cuff or on the body, her body has to be able to accommodate how the clothes will fit her,” she says.
Culmone is also convinced that little girls playing with the doll never compare their body with the doll’s because, she argues, kids have a different perspective on the human body than adults.