Finally Florida!

Mary Blair's concept art for the Contemporary Resort 

Grand Canyon Concourse tile mural... as a ceramic vase.

Walt Disney World turns 40 this year and Jody and I were invited to concept nostalgic collectibles for the Orlando resort's anniversary.  Naturally,  we adore the vintage look of WDW in all its 'seventies orange and lime-green goodness.  Excited about the project, we submitted far more concepts than Disney had expected, including attraction replicas and scale models, a line of retro Tiki mugs for the Polynesian resort, and other cool stuff.  Disney ultimately decided on a small assortment of "gift" items similar to things we had designed for Disneyland's 50th last year, which we think are pretty cool too.  (As for those unproduced collectibles, don't cry.  There's always the 50th Anniversary to look forward to, right?)

A boxed trio of mini-attraction posters silk-screened 

the old fashioned way, onto sheets of tin!

In a rare departure from the way we've always created collectibles in the past, we had assistance from the Florida merchandise team in Disney's Design Group.  Talented artists on their own, we'd like to give DDG a hearty round of applause for all their efforts.  In particular, we want to express our warmest gratitude to Disney artist Linda Flynn who labored over the nitty-gritty details to get exactly what we wanted out of each item.  Linda, you rock.

Vintage graphic "Magic Kingdom"paper cup, cast in ceramic.

The items are already beginning to be released at various locations around the Florida resort: The Tin Attraction Poster set is available right now at Downtown Disney, EPCOT Center's Art of Disney, and at the Magic Kingdom's Disneyana Shop.  The other items will follow throughout the summer.  

Boxed Dinnerware set illustrated with the colorful 

map insert in the 1971 Preview Center Map.

Jody and I will be in Florida for the Resort's big Fortieth Anniversary shindig, with an appearance and signing event at the Magic Kingdom on October 1, 2011.   

Note to west coast Disney fans, we've been informed that as of now, there are no plans to offer the Florida collectibles in Anaheim, but you can order these items though the Walt Disney World Guest Services Mail Order Merchandise Dept. by calling (407) 363-6200.)

Parrot of the Caribbean

Click above photo to make it huge.

I can't believe he's finally done, and I wish I could keep him.  He's destined for the D23 Expo Auction in August.  If you're interested in bidding, keep a weather eye open for Lot #27, Mateys!

From the auction catalog:

WALT DISNEY WORLD

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN PARROT "BARKER BIRD" 

A one-of-a-kind, hand-made, authentic replica by Kevin Kidney & Jody Daily

Mixed Media (Fiberglass, wood, feathers, metal, nylon fur cloth, velvet, cotton fabric, rope, and an artificial eye.)

Dimensions:

Entire piece: 31" H x 17" W x 12" D.

Parrot figure is 19" H

Value (Disney's estimate): $4,500 - $6,000

Fur and Feathers

You have a Friend Request from Disney

It never crossed my mind to publicly declare fandom for Disney on facebook, but I guess that perhaps it's finally time to "Like" Disney. Jody and I are this week's featured artists on the company's official facebook and Twitter pages. You can download a pretty slick image of our giant Disneyland '55 paper sculpture for your desktop, and it won't cost you anything. Do it! 

I'm doin' it.  

Pegged and Painted

With his solitary glass eye installed behind his eyelids and his hand-turned wooden leg varnished up like fine old furniture, he's starting to look pretty sharp.  Jody's detailed paint work on the face looks great even in close-up.  Our parrot will be viewed (and scrutinized) much closer than the original figure ever was in Walt Disney World's Pirates of the Caribbean attraction, so the details require time and tender loving care.

Coming up next:  Fur and Feathers!

• Look for the completed Pirates of the Caribbean "Barker" Parrot replica on display at the D23 Expo 2011 in Anaheim this August. The one-of-a-kind replica will be on the auction block on Saturday, August 20th as part of the Expo Live and Silent Auction.

Fiberglass and Feathers

A new project has landed on our worktable and the feathers are flying.  It's a one-of-a-kind figure we're making for the D23 Expo auction in August.  

Any guesses who this is going to turn out to be??

Models and Movie Magic

I just wrote an article for the Walt Disney Family Museum blog on the use of Character Model Statues and the artists who created them, at the Walt Disney Studio in the late 1930s and early 1940s.  It's a topic that always gets me excited!  

Walt Disney Family Museum blog 

Pinocchio puppet model made by Bob Jones