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.”

The Art of Maggie Parr

posted on July 14th, 2011 by Dara Trujillo, Manager, Merchandise Synergy, Events, and Communication

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This last Friday, July 15 at 5 p.m., the Art of Disney Parks at Downtown Disney Marketplace hosted former Walt Disney Imagineer Maggie Parr, who has showcase her exciting collection of Renaissance-inspired Disney character portraits. 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.

To help celebrate Maggie’s appearance at Walt Disney World Resort, I want to reintroduce you to Maggie and her artistic styling that makes her artwork so special and enchanting. 

I’ve taken a snippet of Michelle’s interview with Maggie from an earlier article and posted it below, so you can hear from Maggie first hand on what inspired her to create the iconic Disney Renaissance collection and how she chose to depict the characters in the Renaissance style. 

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 Disney Sea. 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.

Tip: Several of Maggie’s “Renaissance” inspired pieces, including “Minnie Lisa” and “Duck With A Pearl Earring,” will be available on the Disney Cruise Line in the months ahead.

Michelle: Two of your upcoming pieces will surely capture the imagination of Disney enthusiasts and Railroad historians everywhere. Can you give us some highlights and insights on these pieces and why you chose these subjects to commemorate the 55th Anniversary of Disneyland park?

Maggie: When I got the invitation to develop artwork for the 55th Anniversary, I jumped at the chance to portray scenes from the opening year. I grew up in Ohio, so I didn’t get to visit Disneyland park until my early 20s; but I can feel its history every time I walk through the park. There’s a certain magic that’s unique to Disneyland. It’s something I try to capture in my paintings. And because it’s a place that was born in the imagination, it seems natural to picture the characters walking around as if they secretly live there. That’s why I painted Sleeping Beauty in front of her castle, and Donald as the engineer, and Mickey as the fireman of the train. To me, they’re the living force that animates these places.

I decided to paint the castle because it’s so iconic; but I was surprised to learn that it was originally painted white. I left Aurora’s dress pink (instead of blue) to honor the current coloration of the castle. I also wanted to paint one of the trains because they’re just so fun. I originally considered portraying the No. 1 engine, but after learning that the No. 2 was Walt’s favorite, I had to paint that one. I consulted Jeff Remy – a train enthusiast and one of the engineers on the Disneyland Railroad – and he generously provided advice on the mechanical and historical details. Of course my pieces are never completely realistic – I add characters and fantastic details to make it more magical – but I try to portray the real-life setting as accurately as possible.

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