Balmain has collaborated with Barbie on a brand-new fashion collection.
Designers at the French luxury fashion house, led by creative director Olivier Rousteing, have partnered with the team at toy company Mattel to launch a ready-to-wear fashion and accessories line.
Comprised of over 50 pieces, the range includes lots of items in "Barbie pink", as well as a nostalgic 1990s-era Barbie logo, and references to key Balmain hallmarks, like its marinière and Labyrinth patterns.
"As our campaign images make very clear, Barbie and Balmain are embarking upon a distinctly multicultural, inclusive and always joy-filled adventure," shared Rousteing. "For this collaboration, we are building upon the New French Style of Balmain's most recent collections, once again showing that Balmain is inspired by the truly diverse and exciting beauty found on today's Parisian boulevards and avenues. This collection also rejects any arbitrary gender limitations - this is an almost 100 per cent unisex collection. For, just as today's Barbie makes clear, there's nothing holding us back anymore!"
The venture also marks the first time Barbie has entered the digital art world. Designers from both brands are set to drop three one-of-a-kind non-fungible tokens (NFTs) of distinctive Barbie and Ken avatars, each of which is accompanied by a bespoke set of Barbie-sized Balmain pieces, creating a unique digital and physical art collection.
"Together, Barbie and Balmain are creating a new chapter in the legacy of the toy and fashion industries," added Richard Dickson, president and chief operating officer of Mattel. "As a fashion house committed to innovation in unexpected and joyous ways, Balmain, under Olivier Rousteing's creative direction, is the perfect partner to translate the iconography that is unique to Barbie into a modern iteration of digital art and physical fashion."
The Barbie x Balmain collection will be available to purchase from 13 January.
Source: Courtesy of Balmain
Source: Courtesy of Balmain
Source: Courtesy of Balmain
