© Disney Editions. All rights reserved.
The Art of Walt Disney World just came out, and I’m excited to share the beauty and insight found in this book. Written by Jeff Kurtti and the late Bruce Gordon, with a foreword by Roy E. Disney, this is a beautiful coffee table book I could not resist purchasing. Its predecessor, The Art of Disneyland, was an equally beautiful book. But I could not justify the expensive price tag on such a label. While this book is just as expensive, it is for me so very worth it. Why? Because there are so many rare drawings you simply have never seen elsewhere in other previous art or imagineering volumes. I can find drawings to Disneyland in many places. But many of the drawings here are offered for public view for the first time in this book.
Let me give you just a taste of why this book is so worth it.
Example No. 1: You’ve probably seen the Marc Davis sketches and even some models of The Great Western Expedition. But in lieu of Claude Coats, who collaborated with Davis on Pirates of the Caribbean and The Haunted Mansion, Mary Blair took on the role of creating the environmental studies necessary for this attraction. These images and depictions are among some of the last done by Blair before her departure from Disney. As always, the color is spectacular.
© Disney Editions. All rights reserved.
Example No. 2: It was called “Raz Island,” “Idle Bay Isle” and “Riles Island” before Walt Disney bought the property in 1965. He would name it “Blackbeard’s Island.” But by the time it opened, it was renamed “Treasure Island.” It was in that perspective, Imagineers created beautiful renderings that would outline the story from the book of the same name. This rendering is of Ben Gunn’s cave.
© Disney Editions. All rights reserved.
Still, most visitors in the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s remember this island as Discovery Island. These renderings never saw the light of construction, as the island became that of a bird sanctuary. Still, it’s remarkable the excitement and emotion these paintings evoke.
No. 3: There has been much discussion around the upcoming Fantasyland remodeling at The Magic Kingdom. Imagineers need not look further than Dorothea Redmond’s and Herbert Ryman’s studies of Fantasyland. These depictions showcase a very different Fantasyland. One that looks more like the 1983 redo that eventually wound up at Disneyland.
© Disney Editions. All rights reserved.
© Disney Editions. All rights reserved.
I don’t know about you, but I’d be thrilled if we received a Fantasyland that looked like this. It would transform this section of The Magic Kingdom like never before.
But this is just the tip of the iceberg of what you’ll find in this incredible book. There is so much more to see and do, even for someone like myself who has been privileged to see a great deal of imagineering art over the years. Here’s just the tip of the iceberg in terms of items I discovered:
- Depictions of The Town Square Exposition Hall (Formerly, The Walt Disney Story) as an actual planned hotel on Main Street where guests would stay nightly.
- Renderings of an Epcot pavilion based on Costa Rica, complete with a bird sanctuary.
- A cabin interior view of the Nautilus sub for 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, complete with individual red velvet upholstered seats!
- A 1986 Aerial View of the Disney-MGM Studios showing a backlot with a huge faux mountain, a pirate ship, and a landing strip. Take a look at the jungle-themed depiction of what eventually became The Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular.
- The depiction of three hosts, not two from The American Adventure. This rendering includes Will Rogers, as well as Ben Franklin and Mark Twain. Over time, Rogers role was reduced because of a concern that he would not be as widely recognized by contemporary audiences.
- A Frontierland covered bridge never used at The Magic Kingdom, but one that would eventually find relevance as the entrance to the Country Bear Playhouse at Disneyland.
- Vehicle Ad Cards that displayed the attractions found on opening day at Walt Disney World. Usually placed on the double-decker buses, these are not as famous as the park’s attraction posters, but they are a unique design in and of themselves.
All of this plus depictions of other seen, but still less familiar paintings such as the Rhine River Cruise for Germany in Epcot, the dutch windmill for Liberty Square,and the Polynesian Resort towers.
If you have loved Walt Disney World over the years, you will absolutely love this book. It’s a step forward in recognizing this resort for it’s true greatness. I look forward to more books focused on Walt Disney World over the years, just as we have with this book and with David Koenig’s book, Realityland. If you love the vacation resort of the world, you simply will love The Art of Walt Disney World.
