Earlier this year, we all breathed a collective sigh of relief when we learned that Barbie would finally be getting a more realistic makeover. Mattel, the toy manufacturers behind the world’s most famous doll, announced that Barbs will now come in three new sizes, ‘petite,’ ‘tall’ and ‘curvy’, and will be available in a range of seven skin tones.
The news was rightly hailed as a stiletto-clad step in the right direction for the brand – but Mattel was arguably following in the footsteps of Lamilly, the game-changing realistic doll created in 2013 by artist Nickolay Lamm. Financed by a crowd funding campaign, Lamilly has the same proportions as the average 19-year-old girl.
‘But what about Ken?’, we hear you cry. Doesn’t Barbie’s faithful consort deserve a more realistic counterpart, too? After all, men can also feel the pressure to conform to unrealistic body types – and that’s exactly why Lamm has just launched a campaign to fund a new, realistic Ken doll.
Image: Lamilly
Just like the original doll, the male Lammily has proportions based on the average 19-year-old male – so no more massive biceps and weird plastic six-pack. The doll will also have articulated elbows, hands, knees and feet for more realistic movement.
Image: Lamilly
According to Lammily’s crowd funding page, ‘He may not look like a runway model, but he values himself for who he is truly is, and always makes sure to pay the same respect to others!’ Amen to that.
Lamm aims to reach a target of $70,000 in order to start making the male doll, and has so far raised over $20,000. To learn more about the campaign, watch the video below then head over to Lammily’s Real Is Beautiful page.
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