Plastic is fantastic, over at Ion Orchard, that is. From now till Oct 21, relive your childhood or get the kids to explore a Barbie Dream House, its maiden exhibition here, which stars a stunning collection of over 600 Barbie dolls.
The dolls are all from a single private collector, local Barbie enthusiast Jian Yang, who has an arsenal of about 12,000 Barbie dolls, one of Asia’s largest. He will also be running exclusive workshops to take visitors through the art of creating upcycled eco-friendly outfits for the world’s most iconic doll.
Don’t forget to stop by a special Barbie photo booth to get fabulously pink snaps. Here’s what else to catch at the pop-up.
Marvel at Barbies in outfits from luxury design houses such as Valentino, Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, and Christian Louboutin. You’ll also be catching Barbie in a collection of dresses created in collaboration with popular homegrown brands like Bynd Artisan, In Good Company, Klarra, and Love, Bonito — a presentation of Barbie’s global diversity in the fashion doll aisle.
Music and movie buffs, catch the star-studded pop culture line-up, including music icons Barbra Streisand, Shakira and Jennifer Lopez. Dolls modelled in the likes of Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, and Frank Sinatra will have visitors reminiscing about old Hollywood glamour. Or catch Barbie versions of superheroes like Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman in action.
A special showcase will also feature dolls in eco-friendly upcycled creations specially crafted for Ion Orchard. As a nod to inclusivity, the exhibition will also feature Barbies that come from all walks of life, with different skin tones, hairstyles, body types, and careers.
In addition, visitors can expect to see beautiful race-themed Barbies, a timely display with the Singapore Grand Prix season.
Barbie collector Jian Yang’s book, #FlushableFashion, features dolls dressed in couture creations made of sustainable materials.
Want to see how he does it? Join an exclusive session with him on a paper couture workshop to design and create your own unique Barbie outfit from upcycled materials. And you can take it home, too.
The workshops will be held on Sep 24, 2022 and Oct 8, 2022 (2pm and 3pm) at Ion Art Gallery. Limited to the first 20 Ion+ Rewards Members per session with a minimum of $100 same-day spend. Participants may register their slot at L4 Concierge Counter from 19 September 2022 onwards.
During the month-long exhibition, there will also be different workshops and exclusive offerings by various brands within Ion Orchard. Ranging from beauty and skincare to food and more, these workshops invite participants to different multisensory experiences.
Learn expert beauty techniques with Guerlain’s in-house makeup artist and create a Pink Me Up! makeup look, or get your sparkle on with any of the special five created Pink Nails Design by Nailz Treats.
For Barbie-inspired treats, you can concoct your own ‘House of Dreams’ cocktail at Ratio Cafe + Gastrobar’s cocktail-making workshop or dive into Plain Vanilla’s Strawberry Rhubarb Lemon Cupcakes and Chocolate-Caramel Custard Cupcakes that nod to the doll’s sunny personality, inimitable sense of style and penchant for all things pink.
Registration and limited slots are available for workshops. Visit Ion Orchard’s website for details.
The House of Dreams will be open to the public from Tuesday, Sep 20, 2022 to Fri, Oct 21, 2022 at ION Art gallery, L4, ION Orchard, from 10am to 10pm.