Last month, photographer Amy Lombard was en route to meet up with a friend in Berlin when a giant pink mansion caught her eye. “It was like a magnet drawing me in,” she says, “This pink wasteland in the middle of East Berlin.” She quickly detoured and spent the next five hours inside the life-size, 26,900-square-foot “Barbie Dreamhouse,” which opened its enormous palatial pink doors last May. This Berlin location, which is the second life-size Barbie home in existence — following a 10,000-square-foot installation in Sunrise, Florida — drew global attention when hordes of feminists organized an “Occupy Barbie Dreamhouse” and voiced their disapproval when it opened, wielding signs that read “Life in plastic is not fantastic.” They also went topless while burning Barbie on a crucifix.
While no protesters were camped out by the home’s fuchsia stiletto water fountain at the time of Lombard’s visit, she still captured the wonders (horrors?) of the infamous plastic gal’s Malibu estate. Fittingly, the color scheme consisted of pink, white, and purple, except for the rare blue zones that were obviously reserved for Ken. Click through the slideshow for a photographic tour of the home (along with annotations from Lombard), including a kitchen stuffed with giant cupcakes, eerie blonde wigs waiting on stands for visitors to brush, a catwalk, and portraits of Barbie and friends covering the walls. This version of Barbie even owns a pink dolphin that lives in a toilet. The house of curiosities, stuffed with 350 Barbie dolls, will close its doors in Berlin on August 25 — upon which it will get dismantled and go “on tour” around Europe to spread its plastic Malibu sparkle (and enrage feminists) in each new metropolis it decides to temporarily burrow into.
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The Entrance "It takes up what would be the equivalent of an entire New York City block. It's a colassal, pink mansion. It looks like this p... The Entrance "It takes up what would be the equivalent of an entire New York City block. It's a colassal, pink mansion. It looks like this pink wasteland in the middle of East Berlin. It has these huge white pillars out front that have the Barbie logo all over them, and they have this pink Stiletto fountain that's also really hilarious. It's all pink everything. Inside, there's Barbie on the ceiling."
Photo: Amy Lombard
The Closet "That's Barbie's closet, which was twice the size of my New York apartment. Little girls can go in and look at the clothes that t... The Closet "That's Barbie's closet, which was twice the size of my New York apartment. Little girls can go in and look at the clothes that they have behind glass. There was makeup, jewelry. It was enormous and every corner that you turned had a mirror. It almost felt like a house of mirrors."
Photo: Amy Lombard
The Art "Every single wall had a portrait of either Barbie and her friends or of Barbie and Ken." Photo: Amy Lombard
The Hair "This vanity area had a lot of these Barbie heads. Visitors could brush Barbie's hair or give her a makeover. They were also kind o... The Hair "This vanity area had a lot of these Barbie heads. Visitors could brush Barbie's hair or give her a makeover. They were also kind of spread out sporadically throughout the entire attraction."
Photo: Amy Lombard
The Famous Car (Through the Window) "This was in the kitchen. If you look closely in the window, you can see Barbie's signature convertible ... The Famous Car (Through the Window) "This was in the kitchen. If you look closely in the window, you can see Barbie's signature convertible in the background." Photo: Amy Lombard
The Missives "These were on her fridge. The one from Ken is noteable."
Photo: Amy Lombard
Cookie-Cutter(s) "This was also in the kitchen. This was among the many cupcakes." Photo: Amy Lombard
Dessert "The kitchen was the first room when you enter the house, and it was pretty much all cupcakes, all pink. When you go in the kitchen,... Dessert "The kitchen was the first room when you enter the house, and it was pretty much all cupcakes, all pink. When you go in the kitchen, you could create virtual cupcakes. There were cupcakes in all of the ovens. It was an interactive-type thing."
Photo: Amy Lombard
The Living Room "It is Barbie's horse. The horse is popping out of a window, and I guess Barbie has a cat because there's a cat tree. It was... The Living Room "It is Barbie's horse. The horse is popping out of a window, and I guess Barbie has a cat because there's a cat tree. It was in her living room. It also had a computer, a bookshelf, and then this horse."
Photo: Amy Lombard
The Shoe Closet "It was a little bit past her actual closet; she has a separate shoe closet that exclusively has stilettos and pointy shoes.... The Shoe Closet "It was a little bit past her actual closet; she has a separate shoe closet that exclusively has stilettos and pointy shoes. It was maybe half the size of her actual closet, but shoes everywhere."
Photo: Amy Lombard
The Toilet "This was in her fake dressing room. There is no explanation for this at all, but there was a pink dolphin popping out of a toile... The Toilet "This was in her fake dressing room. There is no explanation for this at all, but there was a pink dolphin popping out of a toilet."
Photo: Amy Lombard
Statues of Herself No explanation necessary.
Photo: Amy Lombard
The Vanity Area Nearly all pink, of course.
Photo: Amy Lombard
The Summer Room "They had this area that was a beach with wildflowers, a grill, wildlife. It was tropical paradise, if you will."
Phot...The Summer Room "They had this area that was a beach with wildflowers, a grill, wildlife. It was tropical paradise, if you will."
Photo: Amy Lombard
Ken's Corner "This was Ken's designated area. There were a few blue spots around the house, but this was the one that was prominent and had ... Ken's Corner "This was Ken's designated area. There were a few blue spots around the house, but this was the one that was prominent and had the word 'Ken' on it."
Photo: Amy Lombard
The Runway "They had a stage and catwalk after you got your makeover that you could just walk down the runway. Parents could take photos.&qu... The Runway "They had a stage and catwalk after you got your makeover that you could just walk down the runway. Parents could take photos." Photo: Amy Lombard
The Stiletto Fountain "This fountain was enormous, maybe 12- to 15-feet high."
Photo: Amy Lombard
The Ceiling Decor More odes to herself.
Photo: Amy Lombard
It Seemingly Never Ends And somehow gets creepier.
Photo: Amy Lombard
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