The month of August was a little bittersweet as we celebrated the last full month of our special exhibition, MAGIC, COLOR, FLAIR: the world of Mary Blair. This reflection on the life and work of Mary Blair showcased the transition from her more traditional fine art paintings to the birth of her bold color use and distinctly stylized concept art and designs that she is most known for. Along with Mary Blair’s contributions to Disney feature films, she is also credited for her designs on the Disneyland attraction it’s a small world. This ride showcases cultures from all over the world with colorful settings and small, stylized animatronic figures decorated in traditional outfits from their own heritage.
This concept of bringing together people from all over the world in a bright and exciting way inspired last month’s Open Studio activity; creating small individual figures based on your own unique cultural backgrounds and traditions. We started with a blank figure made up of a cardboard roll and paper mache egg, then gave our figures their own flair by designing and attaching clothing, hair and accessories out of felt and yarn materials. Completed figures were then displayed alongside each other to make up one long row of unique and diverse characters - which can currently be seen in our Learning Center!
If there were a it's a small world figure based on you, what would it look like?
Jenna Calvao
Learning Center Studio Technician