artist’s statement


On the surface, Barbie appears perfect. She’s beautiful, has great clothes, several good careers, and a perpetual smile on her face. As a child, I was always bothered by that smile- I put her through any number of tragedies, but no matter what befell her, she kept that fixed little smirk. As an adult, thinking about that fixed expression of pleasure made me start to think about what she might be hiding behind the façade of perfection- after all, how great could life really be for a woman who clearly has an eating disorder, an addiction to plastic surgery, and nothing between her ears? My photographs portray the dark side of life in the Dream House: Barbie’s obsession with her body, Ken’s quest for sexual gratification, all the dirty little secrets they attempt to hide as they present themselves as icons of the American Dream.

All of the photographs are shot using 35 mm film and are printed by the artist. The prints are done on double weight fiber paper and are selenium toned for archivabilty. The photos are done in limited editions of five prints.

about the artist


Sarah Haney is a photographer working in Denver, CO. She is the co-director of CORE New Art Space, a local cooperative gallery. She received her BFA from the University of Colorado- Boulder in 1999.


contact

sarah@sarahhaney.com
720.323.6987
900 Santa Fe Dr., Studio E Denver, CO 80204