Space traveler Barbie doll stars at London exhibition

The Mattel icon is in the spotlight like never before. The Design Museum in London is dedicating an exhibition to Barbie starting Friday, featuring more than 180 dolls, including the one that spent six months aboard the International Space Station in 2022.

A year after the huge success of Greta Gerwig's Margot Robbie-starring film, Barbie arrives at this west London museum for an exhibition that charts the evolution of “the world's most famous doll” since her creation there at the age of 65. The exhibition begins with “Barbie No. 1,” the first model created by partner Mattel in 1959.

A nod to astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti

Also on display are the popular 1970s surfer Sunset Malibu Barbie, as well as the 1992 full-haired Barbie, the world's best-selling with over 10 million copies sold. Also on display are the first black, Hispanic and Asian Barbies, the first Barbie with Down Syndrome, the first Barbie to use a wheelchair, etc.

The organizers are particularly proud to display “the only Barbie doll to have been in space.” This has been designed to resemble Italian Samantha Cristoforetti, the first European to command the International Space Station, ISS. The Italian astronaut took her into space for six months in 2022.

His companion Ken was also honored.

The exhibition features video footage of Samantha Cristoforetti answering questions weightlessly in space, floating alongside the doll. “We are thrilled that Samantha’s doll will be on display at the Design Museum for the first time since her return from the International Space Station this summer,” said Danielle Tom, the exhibition’s curator, in a press release.

For Tim Marlow, the museum’s director, “design has been at the heart of Barbie’s story since her inception.” Visitors will be able to see “the influence of designers and architects — from Florence Knoll to Frank Gehry — on Barbie’s world,” according to the foundation. The exhibition also dedicates a section to Ken, Barbie’s eternal companion, as well as her younger sister Skipper.