Rediscovering Barbie - Post by Contributor Cheryl Maeder

We are so honored to have Cheryl Maeder, a talent introduced a few posts back, blogging for us today. She is truly a gem of a person who's work always causes us to reflect, dream and remember how very important art, photography and object transformation truly are. Below is a perfect example of how she does just that. The world of marketing and event planning can be so broad that our blog commonly lends itself to posts about style, artistic creation and photography. What happens when you put them together and draw emotive response based on past memories and current opinion? Voila, you have an inspired work of art that only the one-of-a-kind Cheryl Maeder could present. She is capable of taking so many elements of art and creation and melding them into a single, powerfully inspired moment. Thank you, Cheryl for taking the time to share your work and stream of consciousness...

Rediscovering Barbie

 

As a child, growing up,  I was not into Barbie at all. I thought she was just a little too perfect for my tastes, a little too cute and girlie.   My next close encounter with Barbie came as an adult.  When my studio was located in San Francisco, I would weekend at my brother’s home in Los Gatos.  My niece Rory, who was ten at the time, would hold me hostage in her room.  She would take out her huge  collection of Barbie & Ken dolls.  I would reluctantly play Barbie with Rory, and find every excuse to try to leave her room. 

Which brings me to the present.  About a month ago, my friend, Julie Dungan Holdefehr, mentioned that she was going to her friend, Jeff Todd’s home, where he had this wonderful collection of retro Barbies.  I thought his collection of Barbies would be really great to photograph for my Suburbia Series so I asked to come along.

Jeff Todd is a former stylist for Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein.  He now is a restorer of antiques and fine art in Palm Beach.

As we walked into his home and were greeted by several different variety of cats, I knew that the Barbie collection would be a great one.  Jeff pulled out boxes of retro Barbies and Ken’s.  I felt a natural infinity to the Barbies of the 60’s & 70’s. Jeff neatly took the Barbies out of their boxes, and of course,  Ken. As he gently lined them up along side each other, fixing their outfits every so carefully.  It was right there, that I fell in love with retro Barbie & her boyfriend Ken.  I took out my camera and began shooting.  At first,  I photographed the whole row of Barbies,  in their various outfits and hairdos, and then I photographed them each individually.  That is when each of the Barbies came alive to me. 

 

 

 

Ironically, I discovered, after my Barbie photoshoot, that the Norton Museum, was having an exhibition on Barbie!  It always amazes me how trends in art and design always recycle around.  It only becomes new, when the artist discovers and captures it,  in his or her own self expression.  That is Art.

 
 

Written by Cheryl Maeder, fine art photographer & designer of Gardenhouse.  www.gardenhousedecor.net  & www.maederphotography.com