Barbie. The Icon.

So when we were in Rome, we decided to take in a few exhibitions and one that caught my eye was the unlikely combination of Barbie and Mucha at the Complesso del Vittoriano.

The girls were thrilled to go to the exhibition and I have to say that shown this way, the Barbie dolls were rather impressive.

There was a much wider and varied set of dolls that I was aware of. Not sure hoe many of them were unique pieces, but still, all very interesting.

There were even some dolls made to look like famous women, like Marilyn Monroe, Cher and Liza Minelli. All in all the show, though rather brief, was well put together and an enlightening view into the world of Barbie.

Alphonse Mucha

Pairing Mucha with Barbie was a juxtaposition I would not have thought of, but moving from the slightly plastic world of Barbie towards the beautiful paintings of Mucha was a smooth one.

The Mucha exhibition showed a much more deeper dive into the material shown, with long descriptions about the artist that opened a whole new view to his work.

I had seen many of his famous work before, but mainly the older materials, depicting a very distinct and an elegant artistic style.

All the intricate paintings of women, starting from Sarah Bernhardt, were truly magnificent and beautiful to see up close.

And of course The Seasons was on display. Just incredible!

Moving on there was new (to me) stories of Mucha’s ties to the occult, Le Pater and seemingly a search for a more deeper meaning to life.

Then came the Slav Epic and the mythology of the Slavic people. This was a bit darker, but also intriguing part of the exhibition.

All in all, the Munch exhibition was a moving experience and I heartily recommend it, if you are in the neighborhood.

And now for some parting words.

URL	Barbie and Mucha
Phone	+39-068715111
Address	Via di San Pietro in Carcere, Roma