Mary Blair (1911-1978) is known worldwide to Disney fans as the matchless designer, illustrator and colorist who set the tone for such iconic animated films of the wartime era through the midcentury as Dumbo (1941), Saludos Amigos (1942), The Three Caballeros (1945), Song of the South (1946), Make Mine Music (1946), Melody Time (1948), So Dear to My Heart (1948), Cinderella (1950), Alice in Wonderland (1951) and Peter Pan (1953), among others.

As a fine artist, Blair was a member of the California Water Color Society early in her artistic life. The president of the Society, starting in 1935, was Lee Blair, who had wed Mary in 1934, and who also was a well-respected Disney artist. Mary and Lee exhibited their paintings together in solo and group shows throughout the ‘30s.

Her art had such an immediate and innate joy, conveying so much emotion in seemingly “simple” designs, that she was revered by Walt Disney himself as a fellow genius. After she joined Disney Studios in 1940, her art caught Walt’s eye. She became one of the few women artists who broke the glass ceiling at Disney in that era, rising to become the most influential concept artist at the studio.

But her talents were too remarkable to be contained even by Disney, so in 1953 she amicably left the studio to forge new career successes. As an independent illustrator and designer, she created many memorable advertising illustrations, murals, tiles, fabric and fashion designs, television commercials and stage productions. Her illustrations for the popular Little Golden Books series are still in print today and are treasured by children around the world.

She and Walt Disney remained lifelong friends, so he called on her again in 1963 – and opened up a whole new phase of her creative life. Disney had been asked to design several pavilions for the 1964 New York World’s Fair, including one for UNICEF and Pepsi that showcased the children of the world.

Mary Blair’s innovative design of the exterior and interior of that ride – including all the animatronic children inside it – was such a hit that It’s a Small World was duplicated at Disneyland in Anaheim in 1966, and has been replicated at Disney World and Disney parks around the globe.

Walt’s death in 1966 devastated Blair, but she went on to create two huge murals for Tomorrowland (1967) at Disneyland, and a monumental ceramic mural inside the Contemporary Resort Hotel at Walt Disney World in Florida (1971).

Mary Blair died on July 26, 1978, at the age of just 66, still creating her inimitable art to the very end. Her posthumous awards include being named a Disney Legend in 1991, and receiving the prestigious Winsor McCay Award from the International Animated Film Society in 1996. Her 100th birthday was celebrated in 2011 with a Google Doodle. Mary Blair’s legend and artistry live on!

Mary Platt, Director

Image:

MARY BLAIR (1911-1978)

"It’s a Small World"

Concept art

c. 1963

Gouache on board

The Hilbert Collection