In researching upcoming exhibitions to add to my calendar, I came across Dina Goldstein’s Fallen Princesses collection, on display at the Buschlen Mowatt gallery until November 15th. The collection has caused quite a bit of controversy. As a matter of fact, when I first saw the photos, I didn’t know what to think. I wasn’t sure if I liked what Goldstein had done with my beloved Disney Princesses. The more I saw them and thought about her project, the more I realized how brilliant the project is.
“Goldstein strips fairy tales of their ‘happily ever after’ ending replacing them with a realistic outcome and addresses current issues.” (Buschlen Mowatt website)
The collection features Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Jasmine, Ariel, Belle, Rapunzel, The Princess and the Pea, and Little Red Riding Hood.
On her website, she describes her Fallen Princesses collection as follows:
“These works place Fairy Tale characters in modern day scenarios… The ‘…happily ever after’ is replaced with a realistic outcome and addresses current issues.
The project was inspired by my observation of three-year-old girls, who were developing an interest in Disney’s Fairy Tales. As a new mother I have been able to get a close up look at the phenomenon of young girls fascinated with Princessess and their desire to dress up like them. The Disney versions almost always have sad beginning[s], with an overbearing female villain, and the end is predictably a happy one. The Prince usually saves the day and makes a victimized young beauty into a Princess.
As a young girl, growing up abroad, I was not exposed to Fairy Tales. These new discoveries lead to my fascination with the origins of Fairy Tales. I explored the original brothers Grimm’s stories and found that they have very dark and sometimes gruesome aspects, many of which were changed by Disney. I began to imagine Disney’s perfect Princesses juxtaposed with real issues that were affecting real women around me, such as illness, addiction and self-image issues.”
Goldstein is a Vancouver-based photographer with a love for portraits and who’s won numerous awards.
See all of the photos from the collection and read more about it at Goldstein’s Fallen Princess website.
You can see the collection until Dec 31st at the Listel Hotel in Vancouver (1300 Robson St).
