The Met to hold first-ever Walt Disney animation exhibit this December

The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, the largest fine art museum in the U.S. will host its first-ever exhibition that explores the work of Walt Disney Animation Studios’ hand-drawn animation.

Inspiring Walt Disney: The Animation of French Decorative Arts, opening Dec. 10, 2021, will draw parallels between the animation from Disney Studio, Walt Disney’s personal fascination with European art and the use of French motifs in Disney films and theme parks.

Forty works of 18th-century European decorative arts and design—from tapestries and furniture to Boulle clocks and Sèvres porcelain—will be featured alongside 150 production artworks and works on paper from the Walt Disney Animation Research Library, Walt Disney Archives, Walt Disney Imagineering Collection, and The Walt Disney Family Museum.

Selected film footage illustrating the technological and artistic developments of the studios during Walt Disney’s lifetime and beyond will also be shown.

The exhibition will highlight references to European visual culture in Disney animated films, including nods to Gothic Revival architecture in “Cinderella” (1950), medieval influences on “Sleeping Beauty” (1959), and Rococo-inspired objects brought to life in “Beauty and the Beast” (1991). The exhibition marks the 30th anniversary of “Beauty and the Beast’s” animated theatrical release.

“Both Disney animated films and Rococo decorative works of art are infused with elements of playful storytelling, delight, and wonder,” said Max Hollein, Marina Kellen French Director of The Met. “Eighteenth-century craftspeople and 20th-century animators alike sought to ignite feelings of excitement, awe, and marvel in their respective audiences. Through exquisite objects and Disney artifacts, this exhibition will provide an unprecedented look at the impact of French art on Disney Studios productions from the 1930s to almost the present day.”