A giant southwestern inspired A-frame in the middle of Florida swampland? Where else but at Walt Disney World. I did not know that “Tempo Bay Resort” was in consideration instead of “The Contemporary Resort” for that now classic, but FoxxFur of the Passport to Dreams blog, has the details.
The original 70’s aesthetic was a bizarre amalgamation of 70’s pop and Mexican hacienda, where dramatic reds, oranges, yellows and browns overflowed from every nook and cranny of the place, and Mary Blair’s ridiculously sublime mural in “The Grand Canyon Concourse” seemed to be the rationale for a strange Southwest aesthetic, crazy artificial trees which looked like twigs supporting a mess of broken stained glass, and the double-duty food court/arcade being dubbed the “Fiesta Fun Center”. I mean, really, the Fiesta Fun Center?
Over the years the Contemporary has moved away from the southwestern feel. A good shift, I think we can agree. Foxxfur explores that too.