“A stunning exhibition landscape designed by Sam Jacob Studio”
Azure Magazine

“Stylishly staged by Sam Jacob Studio”
The Telegraph

“Sam Jacob Studio … create a perfectly tuned backdrop”
The Guardian

Barbie, The Exhibition for the Design Museum is a temporary show (July 2024 to March 2025) that features 250 objects charting Barbie’s story from 1959 to the present day.

We worked closely with the curatorial team throughout the design process. First to understand their intended narrative and the significance of each section in the story. Then to find relevant references that could help build a design language to support the curatorial vision. These references were used as the starting point for design concepts.

References ranged from the stages of ‘Soul Train’ for a section on ‘Performance’, a Barbie version of the Pantheon, to the silver walls of Andy Warhol’s factory for a section titled ‘Icon’. Other features included a chandelier made from Barbie’s hair to make the tactile property of the doll more visceral to the visitor and a table cut into the shape of the state of California showing her Malibuian lifestyle. Colour, texture and spatial organisation all contributed to creating a setting for the visitor experience and object display.

Designing the visitor routes through the exhibition was key. The spatial arrangements created a journey that allowed the curatorial narrative to unfold, but also to provide a variety of scales, materials and sensations as well as different ways of engaging with displays.

Care was taken to allow the curators intention to be spatially manifested – at points a linear arrangement, in others giving the visitor more agency.

A key design challenge was the nature and size of the objects: Barbie dolls, Barbie houses, Barbie vehicles etc. The design needed to present these objects clearly and visibly but at the same time give visitors a coherent spatial and visual experience at the scale of the gallery. This was achieved through a variety of techniques, from plinths that give focus to a single doll, to groups or to more scenographic presentations.

The design also took on sustainability concerns shared by the Museum. This included re-using setworks from preceding exhibitions. For example, the concept of the circular ‘Barbie Pantheon’ was eventually reimagined in scale and detail to re-use a part of the preceding ‘Rebel’ show. Other materials were also recycled in line with circular strategies. The display columns were formed with large scale cardboard tubes made from recycled material and able to be recycled at the end of their life. Graphics were printed on corrugated cardboard substrates.

The design worked hard to maximise the budget. Just one wall was built, with other spatial definition formed through reused elements, curtains, plinths or wall vitrines.