This is What Barbie Looks Like Without Makeup

Just like any internationally famous celeb, Barbie has had quite a few imaginary secrets exposed. We’ve looked at an artist’s take on her depressing home life with Ken, a Dream House where she’s a hoarder, and even what might be lurking under her skin. Apparently, a dream wardrobe doesn’t buy much privacy.

Now Mexico-based artist and designer Eddi Aguirre gives her another makeover. Or make-under, technically. His edited before-and-after image imagines what Barbie might look like without her familiar makeup, complete with under-eye shadows, freckles, blemishes, flyaway hair and braces. Okay, the braces are actually pretty cute.

Barbie Gets a Very Different Close-up

The comparison keeps the blonde hair, blue eyes and pink background, but changes the finish. On the made-up side, Barbie has dark lashes, pink eyeshadow and bright lipstick. On the other, her lips are paler, her skin has more visible texture, and her smile comes with orthodontic hardware. The Spanish labels, “Antes” and “Después,” frame the portraits as a before-and-after comparison.

The result looks less like the polished face on a toy shelf and more like Barbie has been caught before she was ready for her close-up. We have apparently reached the point where even a fictional doll needs to worry about an unflattering photo.

Where the Makeup-free Barbie Image Came From

The image was circulating in early April 2013. Enstarz’s coverage, dated April 2, credited Aguirre and linked to his Behance project. That contemporary attribution matters: this particular face belongs to his artistic interpretation, rather than a discovery of something hidden beneath the doll’s painted features.

In its April 9 report, Le Monde relayed Aguirre’s explanation that he had been working on a magazine feature about appearances before and after makeup. He chose Barbie because of her importance as a beauty reference. That gives the comparison a purpose beyond simply catching a famous blonde on a rough morning.

There’s More Going on than Missing Mascara

Look at the braces. Those aren’t something lipstick could cover up. The added marks and changes to the skin also make this a constructed portrait of a less polished Barbie. Aguirre is choosing what her imagined natural face looks like; he isn’t documenting a real person’s transformation.

That’s what makes the image interesting to argue about. Does adding everyday imperfections make a famously polished face more relatable, or does the before-and-after setup turn those features into another punchline? You can enjoy the visual joke and still notice how much of its effect comes from changes that go beyond cosmetics.

A Different Artist Tried a Different Makeup

The subject also inspired Nickolay Lamm’s separate project, posted on April 16, 2013. His page presents makeup-free interpretations of Barbie, Bratz and Disney’s Cinderella, with the images credited to Lamm. It’s a useful distinction when similar comparisons circulate without much explanation: the Aguirre image and Lamm’s series are different projects.

As for Aguirre’s Barbie, she can probably survive a few freckles and some unruly strands. The woman has already had her fictional domestic life, house and anatomy picked apart. Let her have the braces.