Disney Maquettes
1930 - 1980
In the mid 1930's, the character model department began creating three dimensional sculptures for use by animators in addition to their model sheets, line drawings, and color sketches. These clay reproductions allowed the animators to better represent the characters in their two dimensional animations by having a 3D model as a reference. After an original clay sculpture was created, a limited number of models were cast, painted, and distributed to the animators.
Walt Disney himself was very impressed with their quality. He gave many of them away as gifts to VIP's for souvenirs. Maquettes from the Golden Age of Disney are so rare that many collectors do not even know of their existence or use. Some of the maquettes were made in smaller sizes to shoot a projected light over them and see how the shadows should be drawn. Two such plaster models from the "Dance of the Hours" sequence of "Fantasia" are shown above. They stand only 2" high. One of the largest collections of maquettes was sold by Sotheby's from the estate of William A. Hosie (sale 6795, Dec.1995).
He recounted how he would rescue broken and discarded sculptures from the trash cans after the artists, unhappy with the results, would throw them away. Thankfully, most were not subject to that fate. When World War II began, the character model department was dissolved. Today, these earlier maquettes can only be found in the Walt Disney archives, in rare animation collections of private individuals, and in occasional auctions.
1981 - 1990
By the mid-1980's, the character model department was fully reinstated. In 1981, a single "hunter" maquette was used in the animation of "The Fox and the Hound". However, it wasn't until 1986 that character maquettes were actually distributed to the animators. It was then that five character models were created for the film "The Great Mouse Detective". However, by 1989 when "The Little Mermaid" was in production, maquettes were again considered part of the animation process.
1991 - 1996
For the years 1991-1996, in addition to making a maquette for each animator of that particular character (editions ranged from 14-38), Disney made an additional edition of 500 for sales to the public. These additional maquettes were different from the studio models, in that they were cast in a combination of marble dust and resin, while the originals were made of clay on a wire frame. However, these special edition sculptures were painted by the ink and paint department, using the exact colors from the film. In 1996, these special edition maquettes were discontinued, leaving occasional auctions as the only public arena for these sculptures. However, limited numbers of the actual painted studio model maquettes continue to find their way to Sotheby's auctions and more recently to the Disney Auctions online site.
1996 - Present
In 1999, the Walt Disney Art Classics (WDAC) raised new interest in the release of maquettes to the public. With the release of Tarzan, the Walt Disney Art Classics made available an edition of 1,000 sets of reproductions maquettes. However, these maquettes were unpainted and were much smaller in size than the original studio models .
They sold as a set of three for $450. The sets were composed of Young Tarzan, Tantor, and Terk. In June of 2000, the WDAC released a second set of three maquettes from the film Fantasia 2000, also in an edition of 1,000.
Since 2000, the WDAC has not released any further maquette reproductions. However, occasional maquette reproductions of a single character have been created as a gift for the cast and crew of the newer animated films, including an adult Tarzan from Tarzan and Kuzco from The Emperor's New Groove. Though not for public sale, these maquettes commonly found their way to online auction sites. They were in a total edition of 2,200 to 2,400 pieces.
In the mid 1930's, the character model department began creating three dimensional sculptures for use by animators in addition to their model sheets, line drawings, and color sketches. These clay reproductions allowed the animators to better represent the characters in their two dimensional animations by having a 3D model as a reference. After an original clay sculpture was created, a limited number of models were cast, painted, and distributed to the animators.
Walt Disney himself was very impressed with their quality. He gave many of them away as gifts to VIP's for souvenirs. Maquettes from the Golden Age of Disney are so rare that many collectors do not even know of their existence or use. Some of the maquettes were made in smaller sizes to shoot a projected light over them and see how the shadows should be drawn. Two such plaster models from the "Dance of the Hours" sequence of "Fantasia" are shown above. They stand only 2" high. One of the largest collections of maquettes was sold by Sotheby's from the estate of William A. Hosie (sale 6795, Dec.1995).
He recounted how he would rescue broken and discarded sculptures from the trash cans after the artists, unhappy with the results, would throw them away. Thankfully, most were not subject to that fate. When World War II began, the character model department was dissolved. Today, these earlier maquettes can only be found in the Walt Disney archives, in rare animation collections of private individuals, and in occasional auctions.
1981 - 1990
By the mid-1980's, the character model department was fully reinstated. In 1981, a single "hunter" maquette was used in the animation of "The Fox and the Hound". However, it wasn't until 1986 that character maquettes were actually distributed to the animators. It was then that five character models were created for the film "The Great Mouse Detective". However, by 1989 when "The Little Mermaid" was in production, maquettes were again considered part of the animation process.
1991 - 1996
For the years 1991-1996, in addition to making a maquette for each animator of that particular character (editions ranged from 14-38), Disney made an additional edition of 500 for sales to the public. These additional maquettes were different from the studio models, in that they were cast in a combination of marble dust and resin, while the originals were made of clay on a wire frame. However, these special edition sculptures were painted by the ink and paint department, using the exact colors from the film. In 1996, these special edition maquettes were discontinued, leaving occasional auctions as the only public arena for these sculptures. However, limited numbers of the actual painted studio model maquettes continue to find their way to Sotheby's auctions and more recently to the Disney Auctions online site.
1996 - Present
In 1999, the Walt Disney Art Classics (WDAC) raised new interest in the release of maquettes to the public. With the release of Tarzan, the Walt Disney Art Classics made available an edition of 1,000 sets of reproductions maquettes. However, these maquettes were unpainted and were much smaller in size than the original studio models .
They sold as a set of three for $450. The sets were composed of Young Tarzan, Tantor, and Terk. In June of 2000, the WDAC released a second set of three maquettes from the film Fantasia 2000, also in an edition of 1,000.
Since 2000, the WDAC has not released any further maquette reproductions. However, occasional maquette reproductions of a single character have been created as a gift for the cast and crew of the newer animated films, including an adult Tarzan from Tarzan and Kuzco from The Emperor's New Groove. Though not for public sale, these maquettes commonly found their way to online auction sites. They were in a total edition of 2,200 to 2,400 pieces.
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