Some Ears from the 35th Festival of the Masters fine arts 2010

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Each year a collection of award winning artists come together to create one of the most prestigious art shows in the country. What makesit  different? These artists have won a primary award in a juried art show within the past four years. So, be sure to stroll the West Side at Downtown Disney Area this year and talk with some of these outstanding artists.

The 35th Festival of the Masters fine arts was in November 12th-14, 2010.

The Art of Marie Osmond [Doll Designer]

Marie Osmond is an Entertainer and Doll Designer who made the Disney-inspired Princess and the Frog doll.

Michelle: This year the Resort is celebrating the memories that guests make on trips to the Resort, and we’re asking guests to share these memories in the form of photos and videos. We have truly enjoyed having your family visit the resort on many occasions. Can you share with us one of your favorite experiences or memories?

Marie: “I was realizing the other day, while looking through scrapbooks that so many of my favorite family photos were taken at Disney, because everyone in the family is smiling from ear to ear. I think one of my personal favorite memories, which I’ve experienced eight times individually, is being on ‘it’s a small world’ with each of my kids for their first time and watching their eyes discover a whole new world. Then, they would almost always spend the rest of the day singing ‘it’s a small world.’ Even my now grown children still want to go to Disney for family vacation days.”

Michelle: You’ve been considered one of the top doll designers in the industry for almost 20 years. When did you first start to design for Disney? And while we’re on the subject, what has been your favorite doll, and why?

Marie: “I’m a founder of Children’s Miracle Network, since 1982, which helps more than 17 million sick and injured children every year. In the early 1990s, when I had just started out as a doll designer, we created a series of dolls called “Miracle Children.” One of the first sets, a boy and girl, wore Mickey Mouse ears and were on an adventure at Disneyland Resort. Soon after, Disney and I partnered to make my personal signature sculpt doll, Adorabelle, into the signature tour guides for various attractions such as Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion. I can’t pick a favorite doll from all of these years, but I can tell you that my collectors continuously seek after the Tour Guide Adorabelles. It makes me so happy that they love them.”

Michelle: Not only do you create exquisite dolls for collectors worldwide, but you have also collaborated with Disney on Disney Theme Park exclusive dolls such as your newest release inspired by Princess and the Frog. Where do you draw inspiration to create your Disney-themed dolls and what can you tell us about this newest doll that makes it so special?

Marie: “For Disney’s 50th Anniversary year, I had the best time designing dolls of the three favorite Princesses from the stories which I had grown up loving: Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and, of course, Cinderella. They were gorgeous, very limited edition, dolls and are now a hard-to-find collectible because so many of us adored these Disney princesses. They are still favorites, but now I see kids, including my own little girls, who want to hear the stories of the more modern princesses, like my newest Disney exclusive doll: ‘Disney’s The Princess and the Frog.’”

“Her gorgeous gown was inspired by the story and her delicate features and raven colored hair are breathtaking. Wait until you see her in person!! I love every aspect of this porcelain doll. She’s a stunning addition to any collection. I’ve got a place set aside on my own shelf for this one!”

Michelle: I’m sure our Disney Parks Blog fans look forward to seeing what’s next on the horizon from you. Without giving too much away, can you give us a glimpse into what we can expect to see in the future?

Marie: “I’m heading into my 20th anniversary of doll design in 2011. I think my collectors appreciate that I have always taken the chance to bring them the types of doll designs that I feel are collection stand-outs, both traditional and also trend-setting. I know my doll team has a great year planned, so…let me just say ‘Happy New Year!’ because it will be one for all of us who love to collect dolls.”

Renaissance-inspired Disney character portraits by former Walt Disney Imagineer Maggie Parr

The collection is a beautiful art series that honors characters in iconic paintings from a few of the world’s most famous and historic artists. 

Michelle: Maggie, your work continues to provide a sense of enchantment to our guests. Your ability to capture some of our most notable Disney characters in many film-related scenes and scenarios is just part of the charm and magic that makes them so special. Some of your most recognized pieces have actually had a type of “Renaissance” inspiration. What made you choose to depict the characters in that style?

Maggie: I originally got the idea when Imagineering hired me to paint Disney characters in famous artworks for Tokyo DisneySea. I really enjoyed imitating classic paintings, but it was also an interesting challenge to figure out subtleties of the characters: how they’d look in costumes, what expressions they’d have, how they’d look rendered in different mediums and techniques. I realized that Goofy, and all of the characters, have their own psychology. In fact, when I painted them they came alive on the canvas and I began to appreciate and understand the Disney characters in a whole new way while inserting lighthearted American humor into serious European history. Mickey and Minnie are beloved to the American imagination – so it made sense to paint them as “Queen Minnie” and “King Mickey” after famous royal portraits. It feels fun and irreverent to frame Goofy and Donald as English noblemen in the 1700s. And of course, portraying Minnie as the Mona Lisa is the ultimate parody.

The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel’s Undersea Adventure with Imagineer Lisa Girolami

Tell us about the guest experience at The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel’s Undersea Adventure.

“One of the great things guests are going to experience is the actual sensation of going under the water. Guests will start out on the shore with Scuttle but then quickly turn, go backwards and submerge. We’ve got some great effects that are going to make you feel like you’re going underwater. One of the effects is actually on the ride vehicle in front of you. As you start to feel yourself go under, you’ll see the waterline rise up on the vehicle in front of you. I know you’re going to hold your breath in that moment. You’re going to feel the cold around you, you’re going to see bubbles starting to swirl, and you’re going to feel that submersion.”

Tell us about the music.

“The music in The Little Mermaid is fantastic. The songs you hear are the original songs from the film. But we also had Danny Troob, who has been Alan Menken’s arranger, write additional music for us that plays in between each of these scenes. That music is wonderful, and it’s evocative of all the different songs we have in the film.”

Do you have a favorite scene in the attraction?

“My favorite scene is Ursula’s lair. That’s the first time, in this attraction, that we actually go into black light – from white light into black light. The mood changes and you see Flotsam and Jetsam and you know Ursula is around the corner singing that wonderful song ‘Poor Unfortunate Souls.’ She’s amazing. She’s 7.5 feet tall and 12 feet wide, and you’re right up close to her and it’s my absolute favorite.”

Why build the attraction in Disney California Adventure park?

“We decided to put The Little Mermaid here in Disney California Adventure for a couple of reasons. We picked Disney California Adventure because we are bringing more and more of the Disney characters into this park and she seemed like a perfect fit. The second reason is that, here in Paradise Pier, we’ve created a seaside amusement park. So it felt right to have this under-the-sea adventure in this seaside environment.”

Why build an attraction based on “The Little Mermaid” now?

“We’ve been working a long time to bring this story to life. It’s been more than 20 years since the film was released. And it just seemed perfect at this time because the technology we need to create and tell this story has caught up with us.”

What are some challenges you faced with this attraction?

“The number-one challenge is creating an undersea environment. For instance, when Ariel is under the sea, her hair has to animate like she’s under the sea. We actually tried to think of Ariel’s hair as an additional character. When she moves in the film, her hair reacts after she does. We actually had to do a lot of extra work there to make guests feel like ‘Yes, we’re underwater and we’re with Ariel,’ and have the hair take on its own personality.”

What was the process for bringing this attraction to life?

“We start in a phase called ‘blue sky,’ where the sky is really the limit, and we think about all the things we can do to bring this movie to life. We go through a concept phase and start to do design drawings before we can bring together people who will help us build all the different pieces. As we produce the pieces, we bring everything together in the facility that will house the attraction. From there we start to put the whole experience together for the guests.”

What’s it like to lead this kind of project?

“Being involved in this attraction is a dream come true for me. I watched the movie when it first came out. I’ve seen the movie many, many, many times since. To be able to create Ariel’s world and bring it to our guests and then get to watch the faces of the kids as they come through here is the best thing ever.”