Six Barbies With Virginia Ties Star in New Richmond Museum Exhibit

A new exhibition celebrating more than six decades of Barbie has opened at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture in Richmond, and it comes with a distinctly local twist: six dolls inspired by famous Virginians.

The traveling exhibit, titled Barbie: A Cultural Icon, follows the doll's evolution from her 1959 debut to the present, examining how she was created and how she has stayed relevant for roughly seven decades.

Associate Curator Elizabeth Klaczynski said the dolls on view also mirror the expanding opportunities available to women over the past 67 years. "Barbie has now had over 250 careers. She's been president seven times," Klaczynski said. "One of the things I think that is most special about this exhibit is you can see, decade by decade, how Barbie's evolution has really reflected the changing roles of women in American society."

Klaczynski said the exhibition also stresses diversity and inclusion. "Barbie started off with a sort of very singular identity, and now she has over 35 skin tones, multiple different body types, different hairstyles, different levels of ability."

While paging through the doll catalog to prepare for the show, Klaczynski said she was surprised and delighted to find six Virginia-inspired Barbies, which now form a collection dubbed "Virginia is for Barbie."

The six dolls honor notable Virginians. They include President George Washington, who was born in Westmoreland County, raised in Stafford County and lived at Mount Vernon; jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, born in Newport News; mathematician Katherine Johnson, who lived in Newport News and worked in Hampton at the agency that later became NASA; Olympic gymnast Gabby Douglas, born in Newport News and raised in Virginia Beach; and cheerleaders representing both the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech.

Each doll is paired with an object tied to its real-life counterpart. "We have shoe buckles that we borrowed from Mount Vernon that George Washington owned," Klaczynski said. "We have a leotard signed by Gabby Douglas and her teammates. So, just making those connections real and tangible."

Beyond the Virginia collection, the exhibition features more than 250 vintage dolls along with fashionable ensembles, advertisements and historical memorabilia. Visitors can walk through a re-creation of the original renderings of Barbie's Dreamhouse or pose for photos inside an oversized Barbie box.

The exhibit runs through Jan. 18, 2027, and the museum plans to keep the six Virginia-inspired dolls on display after it closes. Admission is $15, with free entry for museum members, student groups and EBT/SNAP cardholders.