The Cartoon Art Museum is proud to present The Art and Flair of Mary Blair, a retrospective exhibition of the work of famed animation designer Mary Blair (1911-1978). One of the first women to work as a concept artist for Disney, Blair was responsible for the look of some of the key Disney films of the 1940s and 1950s, including CINDERELLA and PETER PAN. Her colorful, charming geometric designs, synonymous with 1950s style, appeared in advertisements and children's books. Perhaps her most famous creation, however, is the Disneyland attraction It's A Small World, which Blair originally designed for the 1964 World's Fair. She was posthumously recognized as a Disney Legend in 1991 and was honored with a Winsor McCay animation award in 1996.
This once-in-a-lifetime exhibition includes an array of Blair's groundbreaking concept art for classic Disney feature films, including ALICE IN WONDERLAND, CINDERELLA, and PETER PAN, Disney shorts such as THE LITTLE HOUSE, JOHNNY APPLESEED, and SUSIE: THE LITTLE BLUE COUPE, and Disney theme parks and attractions, including It's A Small World.
The Art and Flair of Mary Blair showcases the full scope of Blair's career as an artist and illustrator, including early watercolor paintings, commercial illustrations for such clients as Hanes, Pall Mall, and Baker's Chocolate, a selection of Blair's fine art, unpublished family photographs, and children's book illustrations, including pages from the classic Little Golden Book I CAN FLY.
For more information, visit www.cartoonart.org.
