Andreas Deja-Curated Mickey Mouse Exhibit Coming To Walt Disney Family Museum

By Amid Amidi | 01/11/2019 2:28 pm | Be the First to Comment!

Contemporary Disney animation legend Andreas Deja — the supervising animator of iconic characters like Gaston, Jafar, and Scar — is curating a new exhibition about Mickey Mouse for the Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco. Deja co-curated the exhibition with the museum’s longtime director of collections Michael Labrie.

Entitled “Mickey Mouse: From Walt to the World,” the exhibit will chronicle the 90-year history of the Walt Disney Company’s most iconic creation, juxtaposing the history of the character with that of its co-creator, Walt Disney.

Mickey Mouse model sheet for publications, 1959. Collection of Andreas Deja.

The exhibit is set to feature more than 400 objects, including rare and never-before-seen drawings, character model sheets, and concept artwork, together with nostalgic merchandise, vintage photographs, and a variety of Mickey’s earliest and most recent animated short films. The exhibit will also highlight artists who have been involved with the character throughout the years.

“I have been collecting and studying classic Disney animation drawings for a long time,” Deja said in a press release. “Among them are very rare sketches of Mickey Mouse by master animators like Fred Moore, Frank Thomas, and others. Each artist applied their personal style to Mickey, not only in the way he is drawn but also in the way he moves and acts. By analyzing these beautiful drawings, I am constantly reminded of how wonderful and magical character animation can be.”

"Brave Little Tailor" (1938) model sheet. Collection of the Walt Disney Family Foundation. — “Brave Little Tailor” (1938) model sheet. Collection of the Walt Disney Family Foundation.

The exhibit will also highlight artistic interpretations of the character by artists including Gottfried Helnwein, Damien Hirst, Wayne Thiebaud, and Andy Warhol, alongside contemporary works by Lorelay Bove, Tennessee Loveless, Eric Robison, and Sirron Norris.

“Mickey Mouse: From Walt to the World” opens at the Walt Disney Family Museum on May 16, and will be on display through January 6, 2020. A catalog showcasing artwork from the exhibition will also be published.