Barbiecore: the comeback of pink in our lives (a little bit too late)

September 25, 2024

Barbiecore: the comeback of pink in our lives (a little bit too late)

Hi Barbie ! I wanted to write an article about Barbie last year because I actually liked the film and Barbie means a lot to me (I by the way still have my two first Barbie dolls). She represents my childhood and how everything is possible as women. I still remember the day I watched Barbie. I went to the cinema with my family, I wore a pink shirt with a black long skirt and watched the film with my little sister (then I watched Oppenheimer). I felt what Greta Gerwig wanted us to feel. It was a moment for us to appreciate being women, and I loved how supportive women were at that time, we were all united. The definition of girl/woman hood.

Anyway,

This summer, my main priority was the phenomenon of Barbenheimer and which of Barbie or Oppenheimer I will watch first. Variety even called this phenomenon "the movie event of the year". Barbie is an emblematic figure in our culture and, above all, one that transcends generations.

PLOT

Directed by Greta Gerwig (the director of Little Women and Lady Bird) and starring Margot Robbie in the role of the iconic Mattel doll, Barbie, and Ryan Gosling as Ken, Barbie takes place in Barbieland where there are all kinds of Barbie to show two girls that they can be whatever they want and there are the Kens.

Margot Robbie plays the stereotypical Barbie and one day her world is falling apart because the person who is playing with her is unhappy, so she decides to go to the real world with Ken: she understands the impact of the doll on girls and how women are perceived in the real world, while on the other hand Ken discovers the patriarchy and has the brilliant idea to bring it into Barbieland.

BARBIE CORE:

Barbiecore is a trend where people adopt the style of the stereotypical Barbie by wearing pink and being hyper feminine. This style has layers which includes « bimbocore » worn for instance by Paris Hilton in the 2000’s. The line between them is thin because it depends on how the woman is perceived.

Barbiecore last summer was a feminist statement. Pink, known to be a girlish color was reappropriated by women. It was a way to empower themselves, to show that you can be wearing pink and still be a boss, a doctor, a mother, … Plus the color pink represents new waves of feminism: people made fun of girls for liking this color and now to have the power back.

The professor of fashion business management, Grain Carter said "Barbie is a girl boss now. Barbie represents tradition, but also pushing and breaking new boundaries."

THE INFLUENCE OF BARBIE IN THE FASHION WORLD:

Barbie paved her way to become a fashion icon. Over the years, Barbie changed her style to match with trends. For instance, in the 60’s, Barbie’s look was mini skirts, bold print and boots and in the 80’s, the trend was more about big hair, and glamour. Barbie’s fashion choices have always been a reflection of the times.

Barbie’s impact on fashion trends can be seen in her collaborations with fashion designers and brands. Those collaborations have not only enhanced Barbie's fashion stature but have also solidified her status as a cultural icon with a lasting impact on the fashion industry.

The use of Barbie’s aesthetic can be common for brands. For instance, Margiela for the Fall-Winter 1995 collection where the designer used hot pink, velour dresses, … and the models were wearing a mask. Was it a way to denounce the patriarchy, like women are imprisoned to perform ? Actually, I don’t know.

The most iconic and blatant collection inspired by Barbie was the Spring/Summer 2015 collection of Moschino. The designer, Jeremy Scott adopted every characteristics of the doll: platinum blond wig, bubblegum pink lipstick, fuchsia leather jacket, mini skirts, … It was a whole tribute to Barbie. Jeremy Scott himself said Barbie "is a good big sister, she’s had every job in the world, worn every outfit. And it’s just joyful. Her and I share the same things: We just want to bring joy to people."

PINK IN RUNWAYS

From what I remembered, the first luxury brand that really was the precursor of the pink trend was Valentino with its fuchsia pink called « Pink PP ». The artistic director of the house, Pierpaolo Piccioli, has dedicated his entire autumn-winter 2022-2023 collection to bright pink, developed in collaboration with Pantone. The trend was BarbieCore.

It was the perfect pink for the Barbiecore look, and many celebrities adopted it like the actresses Zendaya and Anne Hathaway. Zendaya at the time was actually one the ambassador of Valentino and Anne Hathaway styled by Erin Walsh was making her comeback in the fashion sphere. The perfect Barbie look was a ruffled dress, tights and mega platforms in one shade: pink.

Pink was all over the place and personally I felt overwhelmed when every single collection was just saturated with this color, it was pretty but I felt a sense of déjà vu. The pink trend was followed by Moschino, Chanel, Saint Laurent in 2019 and recently the spring 2024 collection by Staffonly.

PINK, A WAY TO CELEBRATE WOMEN IN CINEMA AND FASHION

Shocking pink, the signature color of Elsa Schiaparelli was created in 1937. The surrealism designer created this shade of pink that was in opposition of the normal pink shade at the time which was pallid. It became her signature and got to dress Zsa Zsa Gabor in it for the film Moulin Rouge.

This color automatically became a symbol of femininity in the 50’s and a trend that others followed. There was already at the time a « feminist » aspect of wearing shocking pink: it was adopted by a generation of fearless, passionate women. We can see this color used in the film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes with in the role of Lorelei, Marilyn Monroe. She has worn a shocking-pink strapless gown for a musical number.

Pink was also seen a way to celebrate female power through romantic looks. For instance, in Funny Face with Audrey Hepburn in the song "Think Pink".

Shocking pink influenced a lot of designers including Yves Saint Laurent who admired the work of Elsa Schiaparelli and paid tribute to her in his collections (like the "Broken Mirror" jacket, a pattern already used by the designer for a 1935 embroidered jacket.)

Pierre Bergé said "Chanel gave women freedom. Yves Saint Laurent gave them the power." We can interpret that pink was an ode to women like for his muse in the 90’s Laeticia Casta. For the one he nicknamed his "bird of paradise", Yves Saint Laurent imagined on the occasion of the spring-summer 2000 collection a dress entirely made of the feathers of this rare bird.

PRESS OUTFITS

Margot Robbie has captivated me with her flawless real-life Barbie looks. The goal of her stylist, Andrew Mukamal, was to pay homage to the original Barbie and he nailed it. Everything was perfect: red carpet's looks, the Vogue photoshoot, the Barbie: The World Tour, ...

Anyway, here's my favorite press looks:

VINTAGE MOSCHINO