Have you ever wondered what your favorite Disney princess would like like if she was another race or ethnicity? 23-year-old artist TT of the Tumblr blog Let There Be Doodles answers that question with the incredible series Racebent Disney. Using a combination of illustration and photo manipulation, the artist reimagines iconic Disney princesses entirely by changing their skin colors, clothing, hairstyles, and cultural backgrounds.
TT displays an amazing eye for detail in these thought-provoking reinterpretations, effectively using everything from skin tone to jewelry to to nose shape to transform the Disney characters’ familiar faces. Snow White becomes a Latina woman wearing a festive dress. Red-headed Ariel is redrawn as a Hindu woman with a bindi and henna tattoos. Even Jasmine’s pet Rajah gets a makeover in the princess’s metamorphosis into an African tribeswoman, with the tiger becoming a lion.
“I’m not necessarily trying to alter an entire story,” the artist says, “I’m just working with character design. I create racebent characters simply for fun and because I’d love to see more diversity in our media.” Although TT’s intent isn’t political, the series does put a fresh spin on the Disney princesses we know and love, simultaneously raising interesting questions about media representation and alternative stories through the creative designs.
Above: Snow White from Snow White and the Seven Dwarves
Cinderella from Cinderella
Ariel from The Little Mermaid
Jasmine from Aladdin
Aurora from Sleeping Beauty
Belle from Beauty and the Beast
Pocahontas from Pocahontas
Megara from Hercules
Tiana from The Princess and the Frog