Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1999. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1999. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Reuters NewMedia - Wednesday, December 1, 1999
Katie Nguyen
The "Art of Barbie" exhibition was a way to celebrate 40 years of the doll as well as help a worthwhile cause, said The Elton John Aids Foundation, which launched the project with toymaker Mattel.
"There's this perception in the world that AIDS is going away, when in fact, it's becoming worse than ever," David Furnish, Elton John's partner and the project's chairman, told Reuters. "It's an epidemic and it's not under control."
Referring to experts' estimates that 33 million people worldwide live with the disease, Furnish said in five years that number would treble.
Among the offerings were artist Alex Burt's design with green serpents writhing from Barbie's head, and designer Paloma Picasso's chic Barbie, dressed in a black evening gown with a red silk AIDS ribbon wrap draped about her shoulders.
Wild boy designer Jean Paul Gaultier gave his Barbie heavy body piercing and silver tribal neck bands and was the only one to include Barbie's long-term partner, Ken, dressing him in Gaultier's trademark kilt and striped blue and white T-shirt.
British sculptor Marc Quinn offered the most controversial interpretation -- Barbie's decapitated head smeared in blood-red paint.
Mattel said the furor around Quinn's piece was blown out of proportion. "It was a sensationalized story," said Mattel's business unit manager Andrea Bergstein, adding that it was a "fantastic piece."
The Foundation hopes to raise 150,000 pounds ($240,000) when the "Art of Barbie" dolls are auctioned next April, as well as 100,000 pounds ($160,000) from a charity ball later Wednesday hosted by Elton John and Victoria Beckham, the "Posh Spice" of Britain's Spice Girls pop group. ($1-.6276 Pound)
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