Disney Affordable Treasures!

Disney Affordable Treasures
By John Cairns and Wanda Lunn


One of the best kept secrets in Disney animation collecting is the variety of original
production available to collectors. Collectors who are introduced to cartoon art by
inexperienced sellers on line or in the mall, are often told that ‘originals’ no longer exist.
“...all the cels were washed off.” , “...the paper was mostly reused” are some of the
phrases heard by novice collectors in many stores. This makes the studio limited edition
and modern production art seemingly the only choice for them.

But what the studios don’t want you to know is that a few full service animation art
galleries can find many wonderful original cels, drawings and pre-production materials.
These are not acquired through the studios, but by searching private collections around the
country.

As an example, we often hear laments from collectors such as: “I’d love to have something
from Lady and the Tramp, but I just don’t have $4500 to spend for their beautiful limited
edition art!” The good news is that with patience and time, original drawings of characters
from this film can be found in the $250 to $1300 range and vintage single character cels
often are in an affordable range from $600 to $3200.

But these prices are just examples! Some great images can be found above and below
these estimates. Limited editions are attractive because they capture entire scenes from
films with multiple characters. In contrast, production art captures a specific moment or
idea and will generally feature a single character. Be realistic in your search. Remember, an
original production cel or drawing is a way to have a unique rarity for your collection, not
necessarily the perfect moment from the film that you remember.

But how to judge, and what to collect? First you have to know what art is out there and
how it was used. Here’s a quick primer:

Production cels are the finished hand painted images on clear acetate or nitrate that were
actually filmed when making the cartoons. Production drawings will be either roughs  of
characters - (loose construction drawings of the characters in motion), or clean-up drawings
- (precise finished pencil drawings ready to be transferred to cels.) Color model drawings
are like clean-ups in that they are precise finished images used as guides in the ink and
paint department to identify colors on the different parts of the character’s body or
costume. Color Model Cels are the finished painted umages used as color guides by the
inkers and painters. Also to be found are concept sketches in graphite or charcoal or
pastels - these are the drawings used in planning the look of the character and sometimes
vary widely from the finished image. Storyboard sketches are small drawings, pastels or
charcoals used to plot the sequences and action in a film. Pencil Model Sheets are a group
of character sketches, either on one paper, or they are several images cut out and mounted
together on a larger sheet. Ozalid and Lithograph Model Sheets were made in a very
small number from the original pencil model sheets. These were used as drawing guides by
the animators and in between artists.  Background layouts are sketches that will
generally be in blue or gray pencil used to create the final watercolor backgrounds.
Production Backgrounds are the actual watercolor painintings used to film with the cels.
They are especially rare and valueable.

Here are some general points to understand.

Generally, feature film cels and drawings will cost more than short films, and the older the
art, the more well known the character, the more you are likely to pay. Most cels and
drawings from the vintage era will be single character images. You also need to understand
the time periods in which the art was used and what still exists. I like to think of vintage
Disney animation art falling into 6 time periods; all under the direction of Walt Disney
himself.

The Short Film Era : 1928 - 1937

This is the time period when Disney produced hundreds of wonderful short films. Some of
your favorite characters were “born” in this era, including Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Pluto, the
Three Little Pigs and many others. Cels that still exist from this time period are quite rare
and generally pricey for main characters starting at $2000 and going way up! Concepts,
backgrounds and model sheets will not be bargains, but good values can be found if you
concentrate on lesser characters and scenes. Keep in mind that the first color Mickey
cartoon was in 1935 and most vintage cels before that date are in black and white.

Best Values:  Look for original pencil art of the main characters to get the best bang for
your buck. We've seen Mickey production drawings from this era range from $400 to $1200
for some pretty classic images from his short cartoons. Some very early films like
Steamboat Willie, and Plane Crazy can push Mickey pencil art into the $2000 and up range,
but other 1930’s films are in the lower price ranges. Donald art is more plentiful from later
years, but can also fall  in this same price range. For cels, search for images of secondary
and odd characters. They can capture the flavor of this early era and be surprisingly
affordable. You’ll be looking in the $800 to $1800 range for some delightful images.


1937-1949 The Early Features and the War Years

The release of Snow White in 1937 turned the page on animation art collecting. For the
first time, Disney cels and other forms of animation art were sold as fine art through a few
galleries. Thank goodness the studio decided to do this marketing from 1938 through 1945.
This release saved a great number of delightful production art that might have been reused
as cost saving measures or recycled for the war effort. This is the era that produced many
favorite films including Bambi, Pinocchio, and Fantasia and some of the less familiar such
as Fun and Fancy Free and Make Mine Music. Wonderful artwork survived in the private
collections of studio employees and many of these gems have found their way to the
secondary market today. But art from this time period is not plentiful and time and
patience is necessary to find your favorites.

Best Values:  This is a great time period to look for Donald Duck artwork since he appeared
in many war era films. Cels and drawings can be very good values in the $300 to $1800
range. Again, stick to pencil art for main characters from the features. Snow White,
Pinocchio and Bambi can be found in the $600 to $2600 range in lovely poses from their
classic moments. Forget the costly Mickey as the Sorcerer from Fantasia - you’re better off
finding Mickey wearing his famous robes from a later era if you have to have the look! But
recognize minor characters can steal the show in your collection and are great values. I’ve
seen cels of the crows from Dumbo for $2500, Angus McBadger from Mr. Toad for $1200
and delightful drawings of Pecos Bill and Slue Foot Sue for as little as $400 each.
Storyboard drawings from Song of the South found recently for $1200 to $1800 in the last
year and have been spectacular! Disney did lots of experimenting in this era. Concept art
can be fun and reasonable. Pencil background layouts from less known features or shorts
can be a delight and very detailed. Keep your eyes and mind open to the unusual from
these years.

The Fantasy Years 1950-1959

Disney returned to the classic fairy tale in this era, releasing such memorable features as
Cinderella, Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland and Sleeping Beauty. Donald did battle with the
famous chipmunks, Chip and Dale, and Goofy made some delightful films as an “everyman”
human-like character. The studio marketed cels through the Disneyland Art Corner store for
as little as $1.50 and many great images still exist in private hands. Cels from Cinderella,
Alice and Peter Pan tend to be a bit harder to find since the films were released before the
theme park opened in 1955.

Best values:
This is the era to find great cels from the features. Most secondary characters are very
affordable and even the biggies like Alice and Cinderella are not necessarily out of sight.
Look for the leading ladies in the $2000 to $3500 range in original cels and as little as
$500 - $1000 for spectacular drawings. We’ve found lovely cels of Flora, Fauna and
Merryweather for less than $1000 this year. Drawings of the fairies can be found for less
than half of that. Goofy is affordable and fun in this era as well as Chip and Dale. Kings
and Queens from the features are fun to collect and not hard to get in the $500 to $1200
range for cels! Lady and the Tramp cels of the sidekick dogs can be found for less than
$1500 in most cases and even the lead characters can be had for less than $2500.
Remember that ideal portrait-like poses will push prices up, but fun close-ups and action
poses can be much more affordable.

Walt’s final films 1960-1967

Disney’s use of the new xerography outline technology changed the way cartoons were
made. 101 Dalmatians was made possible in 1961 with this new technology. The Disney
Sunday television show brought back old characters such as Tinkerbell and Jiminy Cricket,
and introduced some great new ones like Ludwig Von Drake. By this time Disney was no
longer releasing theatrical short cartoons, so some of the best affordable art survives from
television animation. Feature films with animation include Sword in the Stone, Mary
Poppins and The Jungle Book.

Best Values:

Look for some great classic characters in new roles. Jiminy Cricket, Mickey, Donald,
Tinkerbell and even some of the Seven Dwarfs were used on the Disney Sunday show. Cels
can be very enticing in the $400 to $1200 range. Ludwig Von Drake is a favorite from this
era and can be found in cels for $400 to $800. In the features, Sword In The Stone cels are
more affordable than 101 Dalmatians and Jungle Book. Best bets from Dalmatians are the
puppies, human and non Dalmatian dogs. From the Jungle Book, Mowgli and Baloo and Kaa
will tend to be much better values from $900 to $2500. Villains from this era will not be
bargains in cels. Stick to pencil art to add Cruella and Shere Khan to your collection.

So now you have some work to do and here’s the place to start. If you are collecting
animation art already, make an inventory of your current collection. What do you already
have hanging on your walls? What does your collection tell you about what you like? The
point is that you need to be able to communicate your interests clearly to your animation
specialist. Are you attracted to multiple character scenes? Are your focusing on one studio,
film, or a specific group of characters? Do you see a reoccurring theme in your favorite art?
Realistic communication with your specialist will open new avenues of collecting for you.

So take the time to sit down with your animation gallery specialist and make up that wish
list. You never know what they can find for you unless you ask!

Happy Hunting!

Wanda Lunn and John Cairns have over 24 years of experience in helping collectors acquire quality
animation art. They were instrumental in the sucess of Gallery Lainzberg - the nations first large showcase
of animation art. They are the owners of First Animation Art in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Things you should know!
First Animation Art
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
phone 1-888-921-1001 toll free or 319-862-1169