By Allen Voivod
Three years ago, Barbie Signature released its first tribute to the pioneer of sound and vision, David Bowie, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Space Oddity. That Barbie doll recreated his Ziggy Stardust alter ego, complete with space suit and makeup effects.
Now, in honor of the 50th anniversary of Bowie's album Hunky Dory, we're thrilled to announce the arrival of our second David Bowie doll. This time, Barbie is dressed in an authentic replica of the bespoke powder-blue suit Bowie wore in the “Life on Mars?” music video.
David Bowie Barbie Doll 2 debuts today. Retailing for $50, this Bowie Barbie is a Gold Label doll with a limit of two (2) per person. That means you can get one to de-box and another to keep in pristine NRFB condition.
Designer Manager Linda Kyaw-Merschon led the team that created the first Bowie doll and returned for the glam-rock sequel. "I discovered Bowie in my late teenage years,” Linda says. “He was like nothing I had experienced before. To me, he's the ultimate artistic icon for the music industry. He was so ahead of his time, and defied so many barriers."
Re-creating a real-world fashion at Barbie scale can be challenging – and perhaps even more so when the outfit is so well known. "Luckily enough, I have a superb team that knows all the tricks to get it right!" Linda says. "The secret is to capture the essence of it, since doing an exact 1:1 scale version is almost impossible. Definitely lots of trial and error involved, but being tenacious is a trait that has served us well."
In addition to the powder-blue suit, Barbie-as-Bowie models a foil-printed pin-stripe shirt, statement tie, and platform shoes. The look is complete with bold blue eyeshadow and a hairstyle inspired by Bowie’s ‘70s glam era. " We also wanted to make sure it looked like Barbie, but as Bowie. Not Bowie exactly as himself," Linda explains, referring to the choices of the Neysa facial sculpt and Gigi doll body. "We tried to emulate his essence as much as we can. He was quite slender and pale, so we made sure to capture that as best could. Balance is key. Tricky, but I think you'll see what I mean when you see the doll in real life."
And when you do get the doll in real life, you'll see just how much fun Senior Packaging Designer Laydiana Chiv had with the doll box, too. "The BOWIE logo reflects the silver that's found on his tie, and the soft blue wrapping of the packaging is taken from his iconic blue suit and eye shadow makeup," she says. "We also wanted to insert an Easter egg for Bowie fans by using the checkered distorted pattern from the sweater that Bowie wears on the Hunky Dory album cover. And plus, make the doll’s hair pop!"
Now that you know the details, be sure to get to the Mattel Creations shop to add our latest David Bowie tribute doll to your collection!
© 2022 The David Bowie Archive ® Under license to Perryscope Productions LLC/Epic Rights. Photos © by Greg Gorman/ © 2022 The David Bowie Archive ® Under license to Perryscope Productions LLC/Epic Rights.
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