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Walt Disney Family Museum Reexamines Alice in Wonderland with Contemporary Artist Camille Rose Garcia alongside works by Disney Legend Mary Blair

The Walt Disney Family Museum is pleased to present the exhibition Camille Rose Garcia: Down the Rabbit Hole. On view from May 9 to November 3, 2013, the exhibition features some 40 works by Garcia alongside seven Alice in Wonderlandconcept paintings by Disney artist Mary Blair from the Museum’s collection. Organized by guest curator Tere Romo, the exhibition celebrates not only Garcia and Blair’s artistry across decades and artistic styles, but also the power of art to draw us into magical worlds that spark engagement and inspiration.

Since its publication in 1865, Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland has been re-interpreted visually in a wide-range of artistic styles and media, including as an animated Walt Disney film in 1951. Over half a century later, Garcia has updated the enduring classic with her distinctive illustrations that capture a young girl’s surreal adventures after following a rabbit down a hole. In this exhibition of Garcia’s book illustrations, Alice’s encounters with the White Rabbit, Mad Hatter and Red Queen are quirky renditions of the main characters set against colorful backdrops. With her conscious disregard for perspective or scale in her compositions, Garcia creates a fresh and contemporary depiction of the dreamlike story. Her illustrations not only draw from a Goth sensibility, but also the thriving “low-brow art” movement in Los Angeles and its references to classic cartoons, 60’s TV sitcoms, rock music, and comic books. However, in keeping with Lewis’s intended audience, the illustrations retain the animation quality of the Disney film that continues to appeal to all generations.Read More »Walt Disney Family Museum Reexamines Alice in Wonderland with Contemporary Artist Camille Rose Garcia alongside works by Disney Legend Mary Blair

Upcoming Talks and Screenings at Walt Disney Family Museum

The Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco has lined up a great series of screenings and talks for the end of the year. The special Snow White and the Stop Motion exhibits also continue through the spring, including screenings and talks about Snow White. Don Hahn’s film “Christmas with Walt” is a historical look at how it was celebrated in film, at the parks, and by the Disney family. Legendary Disney Imagineer Bob Gurr will give a talk on how Walt was able to inspire his Imagineers to build Disneyland in less than a year. Finally, this Wednesday, head down to the museum to celebrate Walt’s Birthday.

Dates and details below the jump:

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Award Winning Imagineer’s Illustrations On Exhibit at Orlando Museum of Art

John Rocco has led an amazing life. He’s worked with Whoopi Goldberg, designed attractions for Walt Disney Imagineering, he’s even been awarded the Caldecott award for a book he illustrated. His illustrations for children’s books can be found on covers of great series like “The… Read More »Award Winning Imagineer’s Illustrations On Exhibit at Orlando Museum of Art

Walt Disney Family Museum Amasses Unique Collection

An interview with The Walt Disney Family Museum’s director of collections, Michael Labrie, was recently published. It provides some interesting background to the museum and its growing collection. Says Labrie: “Diane just acquired this wonderful collection of small thumbnail paintings of scenes from ‘Lady and… Read More »Walt Disney Family Museum Amasses Unique Collection

Orlando Museum hosts Themepark Concept Art Exhibit

Orlando is no longer thought of as solely the house of the mouse; since the boy wizard set up shop up International Drive, people have begun to take notice that Universal has a terrific staff of creative developers of its own. That shouldn’t be a… Read More »Orlando Museum hosts Themepark Concept Art Exhibit

Disneyland Donates California Zephyr Locomotive to Western Pacific Railroad Museum

Despite having California right in the title, the park known as California Adventure has never had a coherent theme. Was it a movie studio? A fantasy-take on the golden state? or a wistful glance at the history of seaside amusement parks? There was no one theme, but it was trying to capture the gestalt of California. The new ‘theme’ is even less coherent (but that’s a different article) and it requires the removal of everything that greeted guests and set up the park’s original story.

The new story (about Walt’s arrival in California) doesn’t need railroads (despite the very important role they played in the early life of Walt Disney, including his arrival). So that means it’s time for the California Zephyr to hit the road. But some good will come of it, the Disneyland Resort has donated the California Zephyr train previously located at the entrance to Western Pacific Railroad Museum in Portola, CA.

The train and related artifacts, which were part of the entrance to the theme park, arrived at their new home August 6 and will become part of the museum’s Zephyr Project collection. Plans for a gallery dedicated to sharing the legacy of the California Zephyr are underway.

“Walt Disney’s love of trains made this donation perfectly fitting,” said Disneyland Resort President George A. Kalogridis. “The expansion of Disney California Adventure park provided the opportunity for us to make this meaningful donation and we are thrilled the train will offer museum visitors and train enthusiasts an immersive experience, much like it did here.”

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A visit to the Walt Disney Family Museum

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Ed note: welcome back long time blog author Whit Honea. The Walt Disney Family Museum has been lambasted over the fact that it is located in San Francisco rather than in a town with a more direct link to the legacy of its namesake. I… Read More »A visit to the Walt Disney Family Museum

Walt Disney Family Museum Hosts YouTube Contest for 1st Anniversary

The Walt Disney Family Museum is celebrating its first anniversary by asking What Would Walt Do? Specifically they want you, to channel your inner-Walt and create a promotional video for the museum then upload it to Youtube. The best videos will win prizes, including a trip to the museum and a private tour.

Here’s a video they’ve released with more information:

More details on the promotional contest below the jump:

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