THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, July 31, 1994 TAG: 9407280225
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 40 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Nancy McWilliams
LENGTH: Medium: 61 lines
Mickey Mouse, Goofy, and Simba on the Outer Banks? A stop in Nags Head by Disney artists is grabbing the attention of the young and the young at heart.
Art lovers who admire fun, colorful animation ``cels'' - the celluloid strips used in animation - but who can't get to Florida or California this summer should be sure to visit the Seaside Art Gallery in Nags Head Aug. 5-6.
Two Disney artists will use the Seaside gallery as their studio-away-from-home, demonstrating the special techniques of painting scenes from the latest Disney's animated feature, ``The Lion King.''
The public is invited to watch the artists work and to ask them questions.
This is the first time Disney artists have included Nags Head in a working tour, and Seaside owner Melanie Smith couldn't be more excited.
``So many people are interested in the cels,'' she said. Having dealt with animation art in her gallery for 14 years, Smith said anyone who loves cartoons is likely to appreciate cel art.
``Seeing cartoon characters brings joy to gallery visitors,'' Smith said. ``People actually come in and start going through (cartoon) dialogue and singing the songs,'' she said.
If watching an animated movie makes you to wonder how such an elaborate production is achieved with simple drawings, you'll get a clearer picture by seeing the Disney artists at work.
Coming to Nags Head from Disney-MGM Studios in Florida, the artists will produce images from ``The Lion King,'' and will work on a special limited-edition cel commemorating Walt Disney and his cartoon friends Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy and Pluto.
Wendy Eike of Disney Art Editions, Inc. in Burbank, Calif., explained that animators begin with a pencil drawing on paper, which is then transferred to acetate celluloid sheets. Artists trace the lines with colored inks and special pens. Other artists paint the backside of the clear cel.
Collecting animation art dates back to the late 1930s, Eike said, and some of the older pieces bring as much as $100,000 at auctions today. Walt Disney himself saw that the original animation drawings were saved in Disney archives.
The limited-edition cels, which will be available for purchase at the Seaside, are scenes from classic cartoon shorts of the 1930s and 1940s and feature films.
Also on display will be two fine art serigraphs derived from Disney's Uncle Scrooge McDuck comic books and a scene of the countryside from ``Sleeping Beauty.''
The Seaside will feature a special cel show with 70 years of Disney images on display Aug. 5-26. MEMO: Seaside is located at milepost 11 on N.C. Route 12, Nags Head. Artists
will be available Aug. 5-6 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.
ILLUSTRATION: Courtesy of The Walt Disney Company
Two Disney artists will demonstrate the special techniques of
painting used in Disney's ``The Lion King.''
by CNB