A Brief History of Black Doll Designers Since the 1950s
Celebrate the role of Black designers in diversifying dolls to help children build pride and encourage conversation.
Workers Assembling Dolls at Shindana (1970) by Arthur LevineThe Strong National Museum of Play
Transforming toy aisles
Because major toy manufacturers failed to bring Black dolls to the mass market, or sold brown versions of white dolls, Black dollmakers and firms like Shindana Toys produced their own. Since the 1960s, new generations of designers represented Black communities in the toy aisles.
Beatrice Wright Ethnic People Doll (1967) by Beatrice WrightThe Strong National Museum of Play
Intentional representation
In 1955, educator Beatrice Wright Brewington instructed girls in the art of doll making. The successful class inspired her to form the B. Wright Toy Company in New York, making Ethnic People Dolls with rooted hair and sleep eyes.
Malaika (1969) by Shindana ToysThe Strong National Museum of Play
The power of collective principles
In 1968, activists Louis Smith and Robert Hall formed Shindana Toys to foster “black pride” by creating Black toys and more jobs into the Black community. Shindana manufactured the most complete line of Black dolls until the 1980s.
Winking Winny (1968) by Remco IndustriesThe Strong National Museum of Play
A crying need
Remco commissioned Annuel McBurrows to create a line of Black dolls in the 1960s. An advertisement in Ebony captured a girl cuddled up to Winking Winny. The caption reiterated that the doll “signals a new age in the production of dolls for black children.”
Baby Whitney (1985) by Lomel EnterprisesThe Strong National Museum of Play
Building community
Melvin and Loretta Whitfield consulted with artists from Howard University and found inspiration on trips to Africa to create an alternative to commercial dolls. Their Baby Whitney had a cherub face and textured hair. Neighbors helped hand-paint Whitney’s eyes, lips, and nails.
Rosalind Jeffries based Baby Whitney’s face sculpt on the flat, disk-shaped heads of the Akuaba dolls of the Ashanti people of West Africa.
Imani and Menelik Kwanzaa Celebration Dolls (1997) by Olmec CorporationThe Strong National Museum of Play
Inspired by their children
A cottage industry of Black-owned doll companies emerged in the mid-1980s. Many were founded by parents, like Yla Eason, who challenged industry standards. Eason built Olmec Toys and introduced Sun-Man in 1985. Fashion dolls like Elisse, Imani, and Menelik soon followed.
Ninteen 95 Hasbro & Kenner, Crimp 'N' Bead Imani (1995) by Hasbro KennerThe Strong National Museum of Play
Eason collaborates with Hasbro
Major toymakers were driven to create diverse dolls in the 1990s. Some people questioned these initiatives. Were their efforts sincere? Hasbro partnered with Olmec in 1991 to offer Imani as an authentic Black companion to their white Sindy doll.
Oni Bean (1985) by Golden Ribbon PlaythingsThe Strong National Museum of Play
Conscious cultural heritage
Yvonne C. Rubie founded Golden Ribbon Playthings and in 1985 launched Huggy Bean, a toddler character doll. An accompanying pamphlet described Huggy Bean’s life in the Chocolate Forest and adventures on her magical Kente cloth. Her friend, Oni Bean, was also introduced.
“Playthings aren’t only about toys. They’re about conscience-building and image-building as well.”
Yvonne Rubie
Black Enterprise October 1986
Shani Gets Ready to Dance On 'Soul Train' (1993) by MattelThe Strong National Museum of Play
The marvelous world of Shani
Mattel hosted a party at the 1991 American International Toy Fair to celebrate Shani & Friends. Designed by Kitty Black Perkins, each doll had her own sculpted face and hair in textures new to Mattel products. The line helped to diversify store shelves.
Treasures of Africa: Mbili (2002) by MattelThe Strong National Museum of Play
Fashion icons
Fashion designer Byron Lars collaborated with Mattel on the first Black Barbies sold through direct marketing in the 1990s. Lars experimented with hair texture and complexion, drawing frequently on the look of Mounia, the first Black model to walk the runways of Chanel.
“It took a Black designer to care that much, to bring that much Blackness to the dolls cause otherwise they’re just checking a box.”
Byron Lars
In the Doll World 2021
Candi Girl, Box No. 2 (1997) by Hamilton Design SystemeThe Strong National Museum of Play
Candi couture
After a successful singing career, playtime with her daughter inspired Helena Hamilton to create Candi Girl, a Black doll sold via mail-order. An early advertisement for the doll encouraged consumers to “End Racism. Collect the Multicultural Dolls of Fashion Candi Couture.”
So in Style Barbie: Grace and Courtney (2010) by MattelThe Strong National Museum of Play
So In Style Barbie
Stacey McBride-Irby developed Barbie: So In Style, a line of Black fashion dolls released in 2009. Her facial sculpts had fuller lips, wider noses, and more pronounced cheekbones than traditional Barbies. The new Aqua curl technology let girls style and curl the hair.
Healthy Roots Zoe (2020) by Healthy Roots DollsThe Strong National Museum of Play
Curl power
When Dove conducted a 2016 study and shared that only four out of ten girls loved their curls, Yelitsa Jean-Charles founded Healthy Roots Dolls. Her dolls had a medley of facial features and skin tones, and hair textures that kids could wash and style.
Photograph:APN Sunday Illustrations (1993) by Associated PressThe Strong National Museum of Play
Critical context
A 2021 CROWN study found that negative attitudes towards Black hair and protective hairstyles like braids, locs, and knots perpetuated bias and discrimination. When asked, 53 percent of mothers said their daughters experienced racial discrimination based on hairstyles.
Fresh Beats: Boa BBY (2023) by World of EPIThe Strong National Museum of Play
Customizing to diversify
Dr. Lisa Williams, founder of World of EPI, introduced Fresh Beats with rooted hairstyles ranging from locks to Bantu knots. Instead of mass-produced Pantone colors, she created custom-blended skin tones to represent Afro-Asian, Creole-Hawaiian, and Afro-Latina people.
Marvel Black Panthers Wakanda Forever: Nakia (2022) by World of EPIThe Strong National Museum of Play
Wakanda Forever
World of EPI captured the authentic likenesses of Okoye, Shuri, and Nakia from the movie Black Panther. Working with fiber manufacturers, the company invented a new technique to create Nakia’s ombre-color dreads in a texture that had never been mass-produced.
Pixie Puff Collection: Penny (2022) by Just Play and Purpose ToysThe Strong National Museum of Play
Proud of your crown
Deedee Wright-Ward, founder of Purpose Toys, observed an overrepresentation of Black dolls with long straight hair or loose curls. Her Pixie Puff Collection celebrated short hair and chic style. This was the first fashion doll to honor curly hair that stylists term type 4.
Bratz x Mowalola Felicia (2023) by MGA EntertainmentThe Strong National Museum of Play
Embracing individuality
Bratz teamed up with Mowalola Ogunlesi, a Nigerian-born fashion designer, to create a collection of dolls. She drew inspiration from her childhood as a self-identified tomboy and the textiles and non-traditional silhouettes reflected in Nigerian and London youth culture.
Group of Black Fashion Dolls (1998) by Mattel, Just Play and Purpose Toys, and World of EPIThe Strong National Museum of Play
Why Black dolls matter
Conversations about hair and skin tone reveal complex ideas about race, beauty, and power. Playing with Black dolls might help to empower children. Toy aisles look more diverse than ever, but work remains to be done.
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