AN artist can continue using Barbie dolls in his photographic renderings, some of which depict dolls posed in sexual positions, a federal appeals court has ruled. The 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a decision denying a request by toymaker Mattel Inc to bar Tom Forsythe from using the doll in his photographs and from selling the photos as postcards. Mattel’s lawsuit accuses Forsythe of copyright and trademark infringement. The Utah artist uses Barbies “to critique the materialistic and gender-oppressive values he believes the doll embodies,” according to a statement.