I’ve decided to start writing blogs not only about the history and trivia surrounding animation, but also about my own experiences. We just got a collection of original art from The Little Mermaid, and that made me think of my many memories selling art from The Little Mermaid, or, “Selling Under the Sea”…

The Little Mermaid is a movie I’ve been selling cels and art from The Little Mermaid for so long, I supposed I should feel like one of those mythologically immortal mermaids, and sometimes I do! When I first started selling art from The Little Mermaid, it was shortly after the film’s original release in 1989. There was a Sotheby’s auction on December 15th, and I think I started selling the art through the Disney Fine Art program (directly from the studio) only a few months after that.

THE ART OF THE LITTLE MERMAID AUCTION

I went to that Little Mermaid Sotheby’s auction. I know a lot of people were shocked at the prices the art was going for, but I wasn’t. After all, I’d attended the Roger Rabbit auction on June 28th, 1989, saw the (unexpected) frenzy there, and the explosion of animation collecting that happened, in part, as a result of that auction and the press it received. The Little Mermaid auction happened at the beginning of the Disney Renaissance, and people were completely in love with the movie. This was also an opportunity to buy original backgrounds from the film, or key setups, meaning cels and backgrounds that belonged together.

I remember talking to Lella Smith, the head archivist at the Disney Archives, years later. She said selling key setups and original backgrounds from movies of the Disney Renaissance had been an absolutely horrible idea. She believed all backgrounds should have been saved for the archives, especially in retrospect, knowing The Little Mermaid was going to be the last hand painted Disney movies (they stopped using cels on the very next movie). Then after that, Disney had Sotheby’s auctions for their movies selling original backgrounds, with created cels made by Disney artists on them.

**After The Little Mermaid, Disney still made movies with 2D animation, but started scanning the original drawings into a computer and colorizing them inside a computer. That’s why there are no production cels from Beauty and the Beast!

There were a LOT of famous people in the audience, as well as folks like me, who were bidding for clients. Most of the collectors I know who bought art there paid 3 to 4 times what they expected to pay, which told me a little something about the passion for the film. That passion has only increased over time.

I was only in my early twenties at the time, but I’d been in sales, in some fashion, since my early teens. When Disney offered art from The Little Mermaid for sale to the very few galleries in business at the time, (there were probably 6 worldwide?) I knew Disney fans were going to go crazy for it.

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SELLING ARIEL BY THE POUND

Here’s the weird thing about it. Although at the auction it was clear certain scenes and characters were way more desirable than others, that’s not how they marketed them to us. There were only 3 set prices for all the art. There were the very secondary characters, like random fish, or Ariel’s sisters. Those were $1200. Then there were characters like Flounder, Triton, Eric, and Sebastian. Those were $1500. Then Ariel and Ursula cels were $2500. So far, so good, I guess. BUT: It didn’t matter if there were 5 characters on the cel with Ariel, it was still $2500. It also didn’t matter if she was cut in half and grimacing. They were all the same price. Sebastian with his eyes closed and alone on a shell? That was the same price as Sebastian in the center at the end of “Under the Sea”, surrounded by dozens of fish. Ariel on the rock at the end of A Part of Your World, Ariel and Eric with Max, and a 1 1/2 inch Ariel floating in the middle of a huge cel were all the same price. People bought it all.

I sold that art so fast, my head would spin. I sold entire sequences from the movie. Ariel putting the flower in Triton’s hair? I sold that whole scene. The famous scene I dubbed “naked Ariel”, when she got her legs? I sold those, too.  I sold so much of it that in three months I had a downpayment for my own house. (The guys that hired me mistakenly figured I was just some girl and wouldn’t do much, so they offered me a low salary but a high commission) I KNEW I was in the middle of art history. All that being said, most of the world still thought animation art wasn’t “real art”. What brings me joy now is knowing there are so many people who bought the art way back then ONLY because they loved Disney and they loved The Little Mermaid, so they saved and scrimped and found a way to collect, and now their art is very valuable and collectors all over the world want what they have.

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JODI BENSON: EVANGELIST

One of my favorite stories about my experience with The Little Mermaid will live on in infamy with my longterm clients and Mermaid collectors…It always makes me laugh and shake my head.

When I opened my own gallery ArtInsights, one of the first things I wanted to do was have Jodi Benson, the voice of Ariel, appear at my gallery. Fortunately for me, Disney Fine Art had only recently started to promote events to galleries (this was 1994, and there were now dozens of galleries specializing in animation art). They were promoting Jodi Benson and art from The Little Mermaid, so they paid for her to come to Reston and appear as well as SING for my collectors. I think at the time her fee was $10,000 an appearance, so it was lucky we didn’t have to pay that price!

I was very excited she was coming to Northern Virginia, and we planned a big event, including using the Hyatt across the street from our gallery for her performance. Now, I’ll tell you, she is a lovely gal, she really is. Her voice was in top form. BUT, I’d been told she was a devout born-again Christian, to be aware that she’d write “God Bless” on all the merch she signed, and might mention God during her time at the gallery. “That’s fine!”, I told her handler, (who was also her husband), “but be aware that we have a lot of Jewish collectors and there will be some Jewish kids present, so please tell her not to bring up Jesus.”

The plan was for Jodi to be introduced to the collectors at the Hyatt, and she would then come over to the gallery and sign art and merchandise for collectors. There were lots of kids in the front row, including my little pal Rachel (now grown, an elementary school teacher, and still a friend!) and her parents. Jodi appeared onstage, looking radiant, and sang A Part of Your World. There was a section on the middle of the song that was an instrumental break, where she started talking to the kids over the music. She talked about her love of singing, how much she enjoyed playing Ariel, and what an impact the experience had had on her life. Then she said, “And I want to tell you all, you never know where life will take you, and Jesus Christ, our savior, (and here she starting pointing to each child in turn..) has an extra special plan for each (point) and every (point) one of you (point).” Oops!

Oh well. People believe what they believe, and they have their passions, and Jodi Benson wouldn’t be herself without hers.  Everything turned out just fine, but Rachel still remembers the moment The Little Mermaid told her Jesus had a plan for her!

Here she is in the studio working with Howard Ashman on her recording of A Part of Your World:

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STOLEN SIRENS AND COVETED CHARACTERS

There are several other memories I have relating to the art of The Little Mermaid. A few years after the initial release of art to galleries, I went to another Sotheby’s auction, one for Disney’s Aladdin. It too had original backgrounds being sold, but with matching and new hand-painted cels made specifically for the sale. I was staying around the corner from the auction house, in the same hotel as many collectors and dealers. I was invited by a big collector to a gathering and sale in another hotel room, and hearing they’d have original Disney production art from the 1940s, I went. When I got into the room, there are probably 20 or 30 people milling around, so it was a tight fit. I noticed a bottleneck in the corner of the room, so I went to investigate. There, on the floor, were three boxes of loose cels from The Little Mermaid, WITHOUT SEALS. That meant they’d been stolen from Disney. They were selling for $500 each. Now, I’m not always Miss Goody Two-Shoes, but I broke into a flop sweat. That was NOT cool! I really wanted to call the studio right then and there. (I didn’t, obviously!)  I tried to see which sequences were being offered, and got a pretty good look at them. Suffice to say, I don’t sell cels without seals from The Little Mermaid. It made me a lot more appreciative that I had sold whole sequences in 1990 when Disney first released official art!

I also remember a time right before Disney stopped selling art to galleries. At the time, there were some wonderful archivists dealing with the art. This was around the year 2000, I think. ArtInsights had been part of the Disney Art Advisory Board for a long time, so I’d been going to the Disney archives and having meetings at Disney for years at that point. We’d seen movies in process years before their release, including the first showing of the first scene in The Lion King. Every person in that theater KNEW how big that movie was going to be, just by seeing the first 10 minutes. Anyway, we got invited to come to Disney and buy art for the very last time directly from the studio. Only about 5 galleries were offered that chance. It was in a big warehouse-type setting. There were rows and rows of tables stacked high with art. The folks who worked there had nothing to lose at that point, so they put out pretty much any and everything they could find. Now, I’d already sold a LOT of art from The Little Mermaid, so that wasn’t what I was necessarily after, but the other 4 galleries made a beeline for the tables with Little Mermaid art. Being newer galleries, they were VERY excited to get art from that movie. So I went over to the folks who had put the show together and asked, “are there tables other than the ones with Mermaid art I should check out here?”, and they said, “You might want to check out the ones OVER THERE.” All the way on the other side of the room was a table sort of set apart, and on its own. I calmly walked over and started looking through the piles of art and they were concept paintings all the way back to 101 Dalmatians, and even a few key setups!! Disney had NEVER sold concept art before that I knew of, and these had seals from Disney. I literally burst into tears (but quietly). Thank goddess I had come representing a number of wealthy collectors, because I built a pile of art from every movie from 1960 forward. That day, a lot of newer Little Mermaid collectors were sated with art from the other 4 galleries, and I was able to buy concept art by some of the greatest Disney artists in history, so…win/win!

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It feels like I’m very old friends with The Little Mermaid, and Ariel and Eric and Max and Flounder. We’ve been through a lot. A number of my clients have gotten old enough that they’ve started letting go of their collections, and that, again, is a win/win. Every generation starting with the one that saw The Little Mermaid as teeny tinies have fallen in love with the movie all over again. It’s on Disney+, so now the newest generation of kids are seeing the 1989 classic for the first time. The recent live action movie has also created a new appreciation for the animated feature. I have collectors and fans write me almost every day asking about cels from the film, more than almost any other Disney film. I don’t think that will ever change. Just like Snow White, the first Disney full-length animated feature, is an iconic milestone in Disney history, so too is The Little Mermaid, the LAST hand-painted Disney animated feature.

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So, here are the cels I just got from a very old friend and longtime collector. Most of them are pieces I sold him “way back when”, as they say. Some of them even have the “Little Mermaid wave frame” we used, a frame that no longer exists, but whose shape mirrors the waves of the sea. There’s even one with a matching original background sold at the Sotheby’s auction in 1990! Click on any of these originals to get more information and see the exact moment each cel appears in The Little Mermaid.

TO SEE ALL ART FROM THE LITTLE MERMAID, CLICK HERE.

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Ariel and Flounder under the sea and investigating finds like a new “dinglehoffer” really captures Ariel as a character, which is why cels from this scene are so desirable! *notice the WAVE FRAME!

This image of Ariel is from the very first moments of A Part of Your World, and while it comes from a frame that included a cel of Flounder and doesn’t include that layer of cel, it DOES show Ariel in full figure, including her tail, from one of the classic scenes from the film. Click on the image to see exactly where it happens, which is the moment she sings “Look at this stuff. Isn’t it neat?”!!!

This next image is from where she’s singing “I’d love to explore that shore up above” as part of A Part of Your World. What could be better for an Ariel lover?

This original production cel from the end of the A Part of Your World scene is one of the most highly sought-after images from the film! *WAVE FRAME!

We love this original production cel from the dinner scene in The Little Mermaid, especially since it’s a key setup, originally sold at the Sotheby’s auction on December 15th, 1990! Here’s your opportunity to buy the cel and the background that belongs to it from the classic film! If there was ever a time for me to be hard sell, this would be it. If it strikes you, by all means, get it!

Last, but not least, is Ariel in her nightgown, and in the storied “WAVE FRAME”! We have a few more images that we might be able to release, but for now, snap up the ones you see here. Art from The Little Mermaid is only going to get harder to find!

It’s the holidays again, which means I’m not only handling holiday shopping with ArtInsights, but my film critic and journalist hat is on for much of the time! I’m not only the lead contributor to the Alliance of Women Film Journalists and write for the Motion Picture Association’s The Credits, I’m also part of 3 voting bodies, which include AWFJ and WAFCA, the Washington Area Film Critics Association. Like many of the critic circles, we have awards every year, so that means seeing EVERYTHING, and also sometimes I’m interviewing folks involved in these films. Since most of you are not only interested in buying art, but in the history, news, and just general information about all things animation, I wanted to write about the hopefuls in the Animated Feature category for the Academy Awards, and talk about animation Oscar history and hopefuls in the field coming up for the next Oscars!

First, let me tell you about the history of that category. There have certainly been animated features that have won or been nominated for awards over Oscar history. Three features won special awards, essentially for making huge strides in process or for technical achievement, including Snow White in 1938, Who Framed Roger Rabbit? in 1989, and Toy Story in 1996.

Here is Walt Disney getting one BIG special Oscar, and seven LITTLE Oscars from Shirley Temple:

Of course you also might remember that Beauty and the Beast was nominated for Best Picture in 1991. While the movie didn’t win Best Picture, (that was the year The Silence of the Lambs won Best Film, Director, Actor and Actress. It didn’t have a chance), it did win Best Music for Alan Menken, and Best Song with Alan Menken and Howard Ashman’s song Beauty and the Beast. Howard Ashman had worked on the film while sick with AIDS, and Disney created a production unit near his home in Beacon, New York, so he could undergo treatment at Saint Vincent’s Catholic Medical Centers in New York City. His partner Bill Lauch accepted the Oscar for him at the awards ceremony. The telecast captures a moment in time when so many were experiencing loss in the film and stage communities, as exampled by this clip of Alan and Howard winning their category:

If you want to know more about Howard Ashman’s life, there’s a great documentary directed by Beauty and the Beast producer Don Hahn, which you can see on on Disney+ HERE.

The argument for not having a dedicated category at the Oscars for animated features was that there weren’t enough releases for it to make sense. By 2001, there was enough competition to Disney by way of DreamWorks and other studios to warrant a reexamination, and the first Oscar for the Best Animated Feature was given at the 74th Awards, in 2002. Shrek was the first winner, and that movie won against Monsters, Inc! (WHAT? As with many Oscar wins, that didn’t travel through time well) The Academy allowed the award in any year where there were 8 animated features released to theaters, but changed that rule in 2019. The other qualifiers include that the film be over 40 minutes in length, and have over 75% of the film be created in animation. In its short history, Pixar has had the most nominations, with 18 (and 11 wins). Studio Ghibli has been nominated 7 times, with Hayao Miyazaki garnering four for himself (with 2 wins).

So: what about this year, you ask?

Well, there are three major contenders at the moment, and the larger field of 5 nominees is up for argument.

Dreamworks sleeper hit The Wild Robot is currently favored to win. Directed by Chris Sanders, the movie is based on Peter Brown’s popular book series. It stars Lupita Nyong’o as service robot Roz, who, after finding herself on an abandoned island, has to learn to communicate and connect with the local animal population in order to survive. It also stars dude-of-the-decade Pedro Pascal as a wily fox Fink, and Catherine O’Hara as Pinktail, an overwhelmed possum mom. One of the major themes of the film is kindness as a survival skill, which is very much a message that resonates, given the current political climate in the US. For the MPA’s The Credits, I spoke to Head of Story Heidi Jo Gilbert about her work on the film. You can read that HERE.  Here, though, if you haven’t seen the film, is a nice behind-the-scenes video:

There’s also a likelihood that the film’s composer, Kris Bowers, will get a nomination for the music score. I also spoke to him for The Credits, and you can read that interview HERE. You can also see him talk about his collaboration with percussion ensemble Sandbox in this video:

While I think The Wild Robot is likely to win the Oscar, another personal favorite is the Australian feature Memoir of a Snail. This movie is NOT a children’s feature. There are plenty of elements that you don’t want your 7 year old to pick up on, whether it’s the sad, violent foster-home storyline, the lead character Grace’s kleptomania, her brother’s pyromania, or mentions of sex and death. The movie is part of stop-motion animation auteur Adam Elliot’s trilogy of trilogies, or his “clayography”, as he calls it, and while it sounds dour, it’s actually funny, dark, and poignant. This is for lovers of Tim Burton at his darkest. Elliot has a congenital disorder that makes him shake, and he incorporates that into how he designs the various characters, making them quirky and a bit bizarre. I reviewed it for the AWFJ, and you can read my effusive review HERE. Here’s the trailer for it, so those who haven’t seen it get a sense of the movie, and a video of Adam Elliot himself taking us through the exhibit of props and production art used in the film:

Next is the movie many of my friends and clients really loved this year, an animated feature that broke way more box office records than, frankly, anyone was expecting. Unfortunately, there are some bad feelings surrounding the casting and release of this sequel. While Amy Poehler reprised her role in voicing Joy with a payday of 5 million, Bill Hader and Mindy Kaling, who lended their voices to Fear and Disgust were only offered 100k each, so they declined. The movie grossed over 1.7 billion worldwide, so they probably could have sprung for a bit more in the way of salaries for Hader and Kaling. Those kinds of behind the scenes issues play a big role in whether a movie gets nominated, and especially in whether they win. Here are the cast members doing their thing:

As to other potential Oscar hopefuls, there are three realistically in the running for inclusion as nominees.

First, there’s Flow, the Latvian entry into the animation category, and if more people (read: Academy members) would see it, it would certainly be nominated, and might even have a chance at winning the Oscar.  At this year’s Annecy International Animation Film Festival, Flow was awarded the Jury Award, the Audience Award, and the Gan Foundation Award for Distribution in the Feature Film category. It’s a beautiful feature, both visually and thematically, and the lead cat looks like my cat, T’Challa. Even the trailer makes you want to cry:

Netflix is releasing the latest Nick Park-directed Aardman Studios feature starring stop motion stars Wallace and Gromit, Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, and it looks like lots of fun. It won’t be reaching the streamer in the US until January of next year, but they’ll have to screen it for us critics so we can consider it in our awards options. The beloved voice of Wallace, Peter Sallis, died in 2017. This is the first time Ben Whitehead, the new voice of Wallace on the small screen and in commercials, will be lending his talents in a feature. So far, the film has gotten nothing but rave reviews, and stands at 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. The franchise is a known commodity, and as such is likely to get more votes than Flow, regardless of which is the better film.

Although The Hollywood Reporter has the Pharrell Williams biographical documentary as one of the top five films in the running for Oscar nominations, it hasn’t gotten the same level of enthusiasm by either the critics or audiences the other films have received. What it does have going for it is it’s directed by Oscar-winning documentarian Morgan Neville, it’s a Lego movie, and it features the voices of a host of famous musicians. That includes Williams himself, Gwen Stefani, Kendrick Lamar, Timbaland, Justin Timberlake, Busta Rhymes, Jay-Z, and Snoop Dogg.

You’ve got to admit it’s a pretty fearless way to tell a biographical tale!:

Here’s Pharrell talking about it at the Toronto International Film Festival:

There’s another behind the scenes issue that will impact which films wind up in this year’s Oscars. It’s the ongoing talks between the Animation Guild and the AMPTP. The folks in the guild argue (rightly) that animation professionals worked through the pandemic and animated features have largely outperformed every other genre in the past few years. They are looking for staffing protections and better rules around the use of AI. At the time of this writing, the Guild was focusing specifically on pressuring Dreamworks. As their talks are dragging on, they have handed a petition signed by over 58,000 working animation professionals and public supporters. You can read all about that, (and sign the petition) on the Animation Guild website HERE. All of that, depending on how it continues to play out, will likely have an impact on which films get votes. That’s politics, y’all!

You can watch an interview with 5 potential Oscar winners on the Variety website HERE. In the meantime, you can let me know what you’ve seen and what you hope will win this year’s race in the comments below!

The Joker is one of the most iconic characters in pop culture. He’s been leveraged by DC in nearly every merchandising campaign centered on superheroes of the comic company. He’s also been portrayed by some of the best and most talented actors in the many films and tv shows in which he appears.

Folks who aren’t obsessed with all things DC would never guess that The Joker debuted in a comic book issue in 1940. There’s some question about who had the most influence on his creation. Jerry Robinson and Bob Kane certainly share the credit, although Bill Finger had an impact on his development. He was supposed to be killed off during his first appearance, but became a longtime supervillain as a foil to Batman.

He was at first created as a terrifying and psychopathic supervillain, but became a bit more subdued and comical during the 50s, only to go back to being dark and evil in the 1970s, and has since been in some truly dark story lines. Just look at Folie a Deux! THAT’S DARK AF!

The Joker is often seen as a modern representation of the trickster archetype. Shockingly, he doesn’t have one true origin story. AND, like Batman, doesn’t have any supernatural powers. His criminal insanity and lack of empathy are his greatest powers.

The Joker became even more popular after the introduction of his love interest Harley Quinn, who was created by Paul Dini for the Bruce Timm Batman animated tv series in the 90s. She of course has gone on to fame and fandom in her own right!

I am aware that lots of comic book and even movie folks know all about his appearances in the comics, but what I want to explore is the many onscreen portrayals of the character, in part because of the recent Joker film, Folie a Deux. I think the new film is art, and that even dark depressing nihilistic art like it has a place in the world. As a film critic, though, I more or less hated it… and reviewed it HERE.

THE HISTORY OF THE JOKER IN TV AND FILM:

So…let’s start with Cesar Romero and the original Batman tv series in 1966. Romero was the first actor to portray the character, and he had a signature mustache, which he had kept his whole career. He refused to shave it for the role, so they just spackled white makeup over it and called it a day. His was the most camp in all the representations of the character, in part because he was playing up to the flamboyance and ridiculousness of the show as a whole.

Here are some of his best moments:

In Tim Burton’s 1989 film, Jack Nicholson picked up the mantel. As an established and Oscar-winning actor, he was able to leverage a deal where he earned a percentage of the box office sales, which gave him a payout of somewhere short of $100 million. He said he approached his portrayal as a piece of pop art. He beat out other potential actors for the role that included Tim Curry, John Lithgow, David Bowie, Ray Lotta, and James Woods. Robin Williams lobbied heavily for the part, but Nicholson was the studio’s top choice as far back as during his filming on The Witches of Eastwick.

“You can call him Joker”

Next to bring Joker to live onscreen was Heath Ledger in Christopher Nolan’s follow-up to his 2005 Batman reboot, The Dark Knight. It was the highest grossing film of the year, and earned over $1 billion at the box office. Unfortunately Ledger died before being recognized for his work, winning a posthumous Oscar for his performance. He died in January of an accidental overdose, but the film was released in July. The Dark Knight screenwriters (  and ) wanted to make The Joker much scarier than the way he was portrayed by Jack Nicholson, referencing villains like Hannibal Lecter and Darth Vader as influences for their version of the character.

There’s a reason Ledger won an Oscar:

Then, most recently, we have several other method-inspired actors who lended their style to the character, to greater or lesser success. One actor has been berated and maligned for his work, Jared Leto. He portrayed the Joker as a crazed lunatic in David Ayer’s Suicide Squad, receiving nearly universal vitriol from both fans and critics. Leto described his role as “nearly Shakespearean”. During the entire production, he never broke character. He based his portrayal on literature on shamanism and on the various characters David Bowie embodied during his career.

Here is the Behind the Scenes special video from Warner Brothers about Jared Leto’s version of Joker

and how could we forget the Oscar-winning performance by Joaquin Pheonix as Arthur Fleck in the 2019 Todd Phillips film Joker, which famously broke a billion at the box office? In what was essentially the anti-60s Batman movie, Phillips presented an origin story for the character that was a cynical take borne of the

In the Matt Reeves film released in 2022, there was a brief cameo of The Joker played by Barry Keoghan, but he was credited as “unseen Arkham prisoner”. Too bad we didn’t see more of him! Since Reeves is starting production on Batman 2, also starring Robert Pattinson, and Keoghan is interested in reprising the role, maybe we’ll get to see what he might do with the character!

Here is the deleted scene between Batman and Joker in the film. Seeing it might make you start a petition to get him into the next movie!

Then there’s the current incarnation that broke so many records in 2019 and sang his way into your brain with Lady Gaga as a loose version of Harley in Folie a Deux, Joaquin Pheonix. One thing I learned talking to the composer from 2019’s Joker, Hildur Guðnadóttir, was that the music she created for the film was an inspiration for Pheonix’s portrayal. The concept behind the first film was a very un-superhero film about a DC character. It was perfectly timed with the public’s growing ennui around superhero movies, and it made over a billion at the box office. Pheonix lost 52 pounds to portray Arthur Fleck, and got an Oscar for his trouble.

Here they talk about the making of Joker, behind the scenes:

and of course we can’t forget one of the best portrayals, that offered in the voice of Mark Hamill for the animated series. Did anyone really know just how good Mark Hamill was at voices before his Joker?

Hamill’s voice talents were used for the game Batman: Arkham City, among others. Here’s a great video of his work, as well as the dearly departed Kevin Conroy, who voiced the animated Batman so beautifully:

Here is a compilation of Mark Hamill doing the Joker laugh and frankly it shows the true depth of his talent. Watch if you dare!

It’s also worthy noting that the actor most famous for portraying Data in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Brent Spiner, lended his voice as Joker in 2011’s Young Justice. He’s great, as always, but you just can’t beat Mark Hamill for iconic Joker!

Here are all his scenes in the Young Justice episode “The Lady, or the Tigress?” from 2021:

As to what we contribute to the world of Joker art, we have some great images from the Batman animated series, including a key set up, which includes the cels AND the original background (which is very rare!) and just knowing Luke Skywalker aka Joker was part of the making of these cartoons is reason enough to love it!

We also have a sold out Alex Ross limited edition that really captures Joker’s craziness:

See all the Joker limited edition and original art HERE (and of course ask us if you’re looking for anything else!)

EVERYTHING JOKER ON ARTINSIGHTS

Yes, it’s true. I was an SDCC special guest for 2024, and for the geeky among you, it was indeed as cool as it sounds.

But let me back up and give you come context about my history with SDCC… The first time I went to San Diego Comic-Con was almost 30 years ago. It was COMPLETELY different then. For one thing, there were way fewer women. That’s not to say that we didn’t represent. After all, folks in the know (and certainly Star Trek fans) are aware that fandom and conventions were both started by women. Still, the ratio was far enough off that in the late 90s, when I corrected a Star Wars fanboy when he said art with Yoda levitating “wasn’t in the movie”, pinpointing exactly WHERE it was in the movie, he asked me, “are you seeing anyone?”. Another difference is that years ago the preview night was quite exclusive. One year I had an art booth with John Alvin and a bunch of famous actors and Frank Darabont stopped by to chat. No masks or disguises required.

In the course of these 30 years, I’ve done just about everything one can do at SDCC other than volunteer. I’ve represented art, I’ve covered it as press, I’ve conducted panels, and I’ve gone as a film professional. I even made a video about how to navigate the experience of going to the con: 

What I never expected and never thought was possible was being an official guest. I have spent my time building panels amplifying animators and filmmakers, which I’ve been doing for almost 20 years. A few times I have also been ON a panel, including one that was for Harry Potter and featured Darren Criss before he was famous:

As someone who has conducted many panels at SDCC, I am very good friends with some wonderful animators who HAVE been an SDCC special guest, and even two panels in which someone won the Ink Pot Award. I was there when Willie Ito won his Ink Pot Award, and it was a thing of beauty:

If you love Willie Ito or even if you don’t know his work or about his life, you should definitely watch the Spotlight panel I conducted with him at SDCC the year he won the award. There’s a point in the conversation where he’s talking about his experience in the Japanese internment camps during World War II where you could hear a pin drop.

About 10 years ago, after I had been writing as a film critic for about 5 years, I got it into my head to create a panel featuring female filmmakers, and Women Rocking Hollywood was born. Thank Goddess I got support from Women in Film: LA, because they have been on the panel every year, and even sometimes helped me when an agent or manager wouldn’t return my calls. The first year, I had Twilight director Catherine Hardwicke, Marvel Executive Producer Victoria Alonso, Wonder Woman producer Deborah Snyder, True Blood director Angela Robinson, and WIF director Kirsten Schaffer. Since then, I’ve had so many amazing female filmmakers talking about their projects and have learned so much from them. Here’s one of my favorite WRH panels:

Truth be told, I’ve always wanted to be a “special guest” of the con, but I thought, “what do I do that would make me worthy?”

In the latter part of 2023, I decided to move Women Rocking Hollywood to WonderCon.  SDCC had just gotten too expensive. Even with a sponsor for Women Rocking Hollywood, I had been finding myself paying more and more – though the WRH panelists only spent one night at the con, many of the best hotels required a three night stay, making each panelist’s attendance cost upwards of $1500-$1600! All the while, the folks running SDCC have been fantastic. They’ve done all they can to help the panel succeed, believing early on that it was important to represent diverse voices. Although there are quite a few panels featuring women above and below the line now, back 10 years ago, the Women Rocking Hollywood panel was the first focused on female filmmakers at the convention.  Anyway, it was getting too expensive, and WonderCon is in LA, where many filmmakers live, so that would be far easier to pull together. Decision made. I didn’t apply for a panel at SDCC for 2024 and figured 2023 was my last time at the con.

Three days after that decision, one of the heads of SDCC emailed me. He invited me to be a juror for the Comic-Con International Independent Film Festival.

It meant they’d pay for me to come to the convention, and I’d be an official guest! I’d be one of three jurors for the fest, which was entering its 19th year. As jurors, we were asked to watch about 100 movies spanning a number of specific genres, and rate them. The winners would be chosen based on the rankings from the three judges.

The entries were from 7 different pop culture genres, including action/adventure, animation, comics-related, pop culture oriented documentaries, horror/suspense, humor, and science fiction/fantasy. This year, there were participation filmmakers from all over the world, including Canada, France, Israel, Malaysia, New Zealand, South Korea, Sweden, the UK and the US.

As you can see by the picture to the left, I was in amazing company, with Juliet Landau and Phil Lamarr as my fellow judges.

I loved the movies we were given. I was frankly shocked at how good some of them were. I also loved that the three of us agreed on all the winners. All of us agreed particularly on our favorite overall, an animated short from France called Thaba Ye. It was not only beautifully animated, the story was moving and poignant. It was wonderful to see so many filmmakers actually in the room for the awards, and co-director of Thaba Ye Merel Hamers was there to accept the award for her film, which was absolutely beautiful. Here’s the short in its entirety for those who want to see it:

And here is Merel accepting the award as co-director and animator of Thaba Ye:

As a juror for the Film Fest, I found I had way more time than I usually do, because I had no panels to plan or run or organize. What a joy! Not only did we have a beautiful room overlooking the harbor, we had time to go to panels I never get to attend, like the Quick Draw, which featured Disney Legend Floyd Norman. What a hoot!

Floyd has been on a number of panels I’ve put together at SDCC, (like this one from last year!) and actually a few years ago, the filmmakers who created the documentary about his life won an award at the Independent Film Fest! Here’s a trailer from that film, which you can now find online and should definitely watch!

One of the highlights of being a panelist for the Comic-Con International Independent Film Festival (and there were a lot!) was that they gave the three jurors awards!! I was surprised and very excited to get it!

Now, it would be wonderful if I could do this every year, but unfortunately, they have different jurors every year. Still, I can say I did it! What a trip!

Who knows what the future will bring? I could never have guessed this would have happened in the first place! I do know I’ll be looking towards the future of panels and events at WonderCon and beyond. I still love amplifying filmmakers and animation artists!

In the meantime, I have my memories from San Diego Comic-Con 2024, where I was an official guest. HOW COOL IS THAT?

ANDREA ALVIN APPEARS ON THE POPULAR PROPS AND FILM ART PODCAST THE STUFF DREAMS ARE MADE OF:

Recently, we posted a blog about the discovery and return of Blade Runner art used in the making of the poster for Ridley Scott’s 1982 sci-fi classic. You can read about that HERE. As many of you know, Leslie of ArtInsights works with the John Alvin Art Estate, and Andrea Alvin of Alvin and Associates and John’s life partner, to bring awareness to John Alvin’s legacy, sell original and limited edition art by the artist, and just generally promote his importance to the history of film and his place in the history of illustration art.

Once we found out what was happening with the Blade Runner art, we wanted to spread the word. We are thrilled we’re able to partner with movie prop, art, and memorabilia collectors and film lovers David Mandel (Emmy-winning writer and showrunner of VEEP) and Ryan Condal (Emmy-nominated writer and showrunner of House of the Dragon), to talk about it on their podcast The Stuff Dreams Are Made Of. Andrea Alvin was a guest of the show, and spoke about her experience working to get the art back, what is happening to it now, and how she sees the future, in terms of the importance of film art in general and John Alvin’s contributions in particular.

The Stuff Dreams Are Made Of was launched by longtime friends and movie geeks Mandel and Condal in 2020. It has gotten a lot attention by the press and is not only highly regarded but very popular with movie lovers around the world. Vulture wrote an article on the podcast when it premiered, interviewing the co-hosts and mentioning both collectors’ bone fides. The Hollywood Reporter wrote about the blog in 2020, as well as did the CBC in Canada. Mandel has a second apartment in LA dedicated to his prop and movie art collection, and Condal has been collecting important movie props for some time, including a substantial and impressive Indiana Jones collection. The Hollywood Reporter wrote an article about the time they had George RR Martin on the show, and George himself wrote about it on his blog, “Not a Blog”. It was referenced in an article about Sean Connery in the British online culture magazine Far Out.

It’s no wonder the show has become so popular!

On it, Andrea Alvin also talks a bit about the fact that the Alvin family, with the help of Leslie Combemale, is selling the entire John Alvin Art Estate, which is comprised of over 1000 original drawings and paintings from John’s extensive career in film. Included in the collection are originals from Aladdin, Arachnophobia, Atlantis, Beauty and the Beast, Hercules, Hook, Pinocchio, Pocahontas, Alien vs Predator, Silent Movie, Spaceballs, the Star Wars franchise, Tarzan, Emperor’s New Groove, Hunchback, Lion King, Princess Bride, Willow, Always, Batman, Cocoon, Cats Don’t Dance, Darkman, ET, Legend, Pokemon, Star Trek, Ten, The Lost Boys, and Virtual World, and that’s just naming a few of the over 200 movies to which John Alvin contributed.

Obviously this collection represents an important part of film history! 

For those of you curious about what might be part of the 1000+ collection, here is a video showing parts of the John Alvin Art Estate in various interior spaces:

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Ryan and Dave are first and foremost collectors, so they have a perspective unique to that, as they say in the first 40 minutes, and it’s why they called this episode “Who Owns the Piece?” There are certainly lots of collectors who buy from auction or from a source that is many steps away from the original source, so the issue becomes complicated. That being said, Andrea makes clear the circumstances of this particular Blade Runner image, as well as the art that was not returned in years past, after many queries to the studios. FASCINATING! It’s wonderful to see such respect and appreciation towards not only John Alvin but Andrea as well, by both Ryan and Dave.

You can watch the “WHO OWNS THE PIECE?” episode of the Stuff Dreams Are Made Of podcast here (Andrea guests around the 40 minute mark…):

If you want to listen to the podcast, click on the various sites listed below to hear the episode:

ON SPOTIFY:

ON APPLE:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/who-owns-the-piece/id1535879222?i=1000654132137

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If you want to subscribe to the STUFF DREAMS ARE MADE OF podcast, (and why wouldn’t you!?), you can do so by clicking the following links to Apple, Spotify, or YouTube.

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ANNOUNCING A NEW BLADE RUNNER LIMITED EDITION: “TEARS IN RAIN”

In conjunction with the release of this episode of The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of featuring Andrea Alvin talking about John Alvin’s work on Blade Runner, we are releasing a new limited edition based on an image created by John inspired by the film. An edition of 50, this new giclee on canvas is inspired by a key moment in the classic film, and the career-defining speech by Rutger Hauer:

“I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe… Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion… I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain… Time to die.”

Beyond the large images of Deckard and Batty, note the detailed design at the center of the image illustrating Deckard dangling from the edge of the building, moments before Batty pulls him to safety, revealing the dying character’s empathy and compassion.   

Blade Runner has been celebrated as one of the best and most beloved sci-fi films of all time. “Tears in Rain” is an homage to the tremendous performances by Rutger Hauer as replicant Roy Batty, and of course Harrison Ford, our favorite professional in the Los Angeles Replicant Detection Unit, circa 2019.

With “Tears in Rain”, Blade Runner aficionados can show their appreciation for the traditional illustration of master cinema artist John Alvin, and join the film critics and film historians around the world that consider the original Blade Runner one of the best science fiction films ever made.

More info: Price: $395, Edition Size: 50, Image size: 15 x 20 – Canvas Size: 20 x 24, with a 2 inch border for canvas stretching.

CLICK HERE OR ON THE ART TO PURCHASE!

Long lost John Alvin Blade Runner art has been recovered in a settlement that represents a landmark win for illustrators and artists’ rights.

As many of you know, not only do we sell Disney Fine Art and original production art from cartoons and live action films, Leslie of ArtInsights is also the official representative for the estate of cinema artist John Alvin. If you’re not sure who he is, he’s responsible for over 200 movie posters in the history of film, from the 70s through the 90s (and you can read more about him HERE.) From E.T. to Blazing Saddles to Blade Runner, film fans will recognize his art instantly when they see the movie posters. Directors, art departments, and film marketing firms who collaborated with him have repeatedly said his art had a significant affect on the success of their films.

We have been working in partnership with the Alvin family to get back art not returned at the time these movies were released. A lot of art disappeared, despite the fact that John Alvin was freelancing and his work was supposed to be returned to him. Years later, many pieces are still unaccounted for, and still other art has shown up at auction.

Such is the case with Blade Runner, and now, long lost John Alvin Blade Runner art has been recovered! We are incredibly excited that Andrea Alvin and the whole Alvin family is now in control of a high comp from the film. It’s the last image created before they created the finished art used to make the Blade Runner movie poster.

This settlement has the potential to have a huge impact on other artists getting art returned to them that is rightfully theirs.

SO MANY artists important to film history have missing art, removed from studios or production houses. Some of those pieces are iconic and valuable, and are sold for large sums without the artists themselves or their families benefitting. It’s more than time for that to change. Along with John Alvin, other heroes of film illustration like Drew Struzan, the brothers Tim and Greg Hildebrand, Roger Kastel, and Bob Peak all had issues getting art returned. If someone steals a painting from the Louvre, the entire French government is engaged to get it back! It should be no different for the work by these all-too-unsung artists. Hopefully the recovery of John Alvin’s Blade Runner art is a portent of things to come. There are artists still working in the film industry today, as well as illustrators working in other industries like publishing or music that could benefit from this win. We are thrilled, and we think all movie and art lovers should be, too!

Andrea Alvin herself speaks to the importance of the Blade Runner settlement in the press release below:

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LONG LOST BLADE RUNNER ART RECOVERED

LAWSUIT SETTLEMENT REPRESENTS A LANDMARK WIN FOR ILLUSTRATORS AND ARTISTS RIGHTS

Pittsburgh, PA (April 4, 2024)— A lawsuit brought by the Alvin Art Estate to halt what the estate claimed was the unauthorized sale of art belonging to the estate has been settled. The estate’s suit was led by Andrea Alvin, wife of movie poster artist and illustrator John Alvin. The settlement confirms ownership by the Alvin Estate of an original painting created in the making of the movie poster for Ridley Scott’s 1982 sci-fi classic, Blade Runner. The mixed media painting was a comprehensive, the closest to the final art used in making the key art for the finished Blade Runner movie poster, one of the most recognized sci-fi movie poster images in film history. The outcome will likely be used as a precedent in future lawsuits by artists working to get art back from those who have obtained it without purchase or permission of the artist.

John Alvin and many other artists working as freelancers in the film industry in the 70s, 80s, and 90s had contracts requiring the art be returned to the artist after being used in campaigns. However, there has long been a practice of people “finding artwork”, often removing it from flat files inside a studio, claiming ownership, and selling the art in a gray market. In those cases, the artists neither get the art back nor benefit from the sale of that art.

In the case of the Blade Runner art, Andrea Alvin, who is an artist and was equal partner in Alvin and Associates, discovered the art’s whereabouts when it appeared for sale at auction. She knew by the information included in the auction listing, that it had been purchased from an employee at Warner Brothers. Because Warner Brothers never owned the art, no employee at Warner Brothers could legally claim ownership or have permission or rights to possess and sell the art.

When contacted, Andrea Alvin offered this quote: “The Blade Runner and all artwork created in the process of the film campaigns to which John contributed represent his life’s work. Whether we keep art or it winds up in the collections of fans, these images are his legacy. We are pleased with the outcome, and so happy to now have control over its destiny, which is as it should be.”

Alvin further explains why this lawsuit provides a framework for other artists to recover original art: “Where the conflict comes in, and where people get confused, is there’s a difference between owning the publication rights and intellectual property, and owning the art itself. The settlement supports the idea that it’s possible to get art back into the rightful hands of the artists and creators.”

As a requirement of the settlement, the art will be sold through Heritage Auctions in the “Signature Hollywood Auction” to be held on July 13th and 14th of this year.

ABOUT JOHN ALVIN:

John Alvin (1948-2008) was an American cinematic artist and painter who illustrated some of the 20th century’s most iconic movie posters, working in the industry for over 35 years. He came into prominence by creating the poster art for Mel Brooks’ Blazing Saddles in 1974, and went on to design art for over 250 films, creating more images for Spielberg productions than any other single artist, including the poster art for Empire of the Sun, The Color Purple, Always, Jurassic Park, and E.T.  His poster for Blade Runner, considered by many as one of the top classics of sci-fi, is immediately recognizable around the world. He also supplied specialized work for George Lucas and the Star Wars saga, with Alvin’s Star Wars Concert and Star Wars Tenth Anniversary images considered two of the most collectible posters of the entire franchise. He is also recognized for movie poster images from Disney’s New Golden Age. His posters for The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, and Aladdin are in part what led to Disney studio executive Fred Tio coining the phrase “Alvin-izing” in reference to his style. His work have been on display in museums across the world, including the Smithsonian Museum, which exhibited Alvin’s art for The Phantom of the Paradise as one of the best posters of the 20th century. John Alvin’s career places him as one of the most important figures in film art and Hollywood history.  For more information, please visit https://johnalvinart.com/

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You can see the art we currently have for sale by John Alvin HERE, but of course let us know if you’re interested in his work or the films he worked on… Although currently most of the Alvin art is part of the John Alvin Art Estate and unavailable for purchase, we do get limited edition and original art from time to time. It’s worth getting on our list!

Join us in congratulating the Alvin family, and in celebrating the importance of this for illustrators everywhere!

As it’s the early part of 2024, and we at ArtInsights are in a new era with our hybrid in-person and online model, I thought it would be a good idea to start a fresh, fun new Spotlight blog series, and since I grew up in a family always surrounded by canine companions, I decided on Disney Dogs. There are just so many to love! Of course it makes sense to start at the beginning, with Mickey’s faithful dog Pluto, who is probably the oldest pup still appearing onscreen, at 94 years old!

Pluto’s actual birthday is pretty soon, too. He was introduced on March 19th, 1930, in The Chain Gang. If there was any doubt what breed he favors, it’s bloodhound! (Who knew?) Years later, after he was more than just a nameless bloodhound, he was declared a mixed breed by the Disney folks.

Unlike characters like Goofy, who is an anthropomorphized dog, Pluto is a dog who acts like a dog….mostly. Did you know before his character was set, in one cartoon, he actually spoke? It was in 1931’s Moose Hunt, where he was officially made Mickey’s pup. At one point, Mickey says, “SPEAK!”, and Pluto gets on his knees and says, “MAMEE!” (that’s a reference to Al Jolsen in The Jazz Singer, which was released in 1927, and was the first full length feature with synchronized sound)

Pluto was designed by animator Norm Ferguson, who is best known for animating the witch in Snow White, and worked on many of the greatest Disney classics, including Pinocchio, Fantasia, Bambi, and Cinderella. Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnson, two of the Nine Old Men of Disney, who together wrote the essential 1981 tome Disney Animation: The Illusions of Life, believed in the genius of Ferguson’s work. They called the flypaper sequence featuring Pluto in the short Playful Pluto (a 1934 cartoon in which the pup went from a minor character to getting his first key role) a “milestone in personality animation…through it all, his reaction to his predicament and his thoughts of what to try next are shared with the audience. It was the first time a character seemed to be thinking on the screen, and, though it lasted only 65 seconds, it opened the way for animation of real characters with real problems.”

If you click here you can see a comparison of the color sequence from 1939’s Beach Picnic in which Shamus Culhane reworked the original work by Ferguson in 1934’s black and white cartoon, Playful Pluto. Ferguson’s animation is a thing a beauty!

Pluto appeared in 24 Mickey Mouse cartoons before his first solo performance. He began as the headliner with the Silly Symphony cartoons Just Dogs (1932) and Mother Pluto (1936).

In the first installment of his own series of cartoons, Pluto has puppies!  He has 5 rambunctious sons in 1937’s Pluto’s Quin-puplets, a short in which his puppy love Fifi the Peke is the mommy to his babies. One of those puppies appears again in 1942’s Pluto Junior. Pluto also has a brother named K.B, who appears in 1946’s Pluto’s Kid Brother.

Although there are several cartoons featuring Pluto as the star, there aren’t consistent shorts with him as the lead until 1940, when the series called “PLUTO” begins, starting with Bone Trouble.

Of the 89 shorts Pluto appeared in between 1930 and 1953, 4 were nominated for Academy Awards. It was one in which he was heavily featured, though, 1941’s Lend a Paw, (which you can see HERE), that won an Oscar. While, like all but one of his cartoons, he still only barks, his “devil” and “angel” alter-egos do speak!

Pluto has two love interests in his history. Minnie’s pet Fifi, was his paramour early on, and their love was strong! They appear together in Puppy Love (1933), Pluto’s Quin-puplets (1937), Mickey’s Surprise Party (1939), and Society Dog Show (1939).

She is replaced with Dinah the Dachshund (what happens to Fifi? unclear…), who first appeared in The Sleep Walker (1942). Dinah is a bit of a flirt, in that she also dates Butch the Bulldog, but eventually she dumps him for his bad attitude. The most charming short with them together is Pluto’s Heartthrob, which you can see here.

Pluto as a character wasn’t in a short for nearly three decades. He was last seen in 1953’s The Simple Things, and then finally returned in the 1990 short The Prince and the Pauper as, once again, Mickey’s trusty pup. Since then, he has continued to be one of the most popular characters of the Disney animated family, and a beloved part of what Disney fans call “The Sensational Six”, along with Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, and Goofy.

YOU CAN SEE ALL THE DISNEY FINE ART OF PLUTO AVAILABLE AT ARTINSIGHTS HERE, but here are a few of my favorites:

We’re in the midst of Honukkah 2023 and, as Joni Mitchell would say, “It’s coming on Christmas”, and with all that’s happening in the world, it’s something that should be celebrated right now. I’ve discovered, over time, that Disney fans and collectors are the most avid lovers and celebrants of Christmas, Hanukkah, the Winter Solstice, and any other winter holiday they can embrace. Disney fans believe in finding joy. They (or maybe should I say, YOU) believe in finding the best, seeing the good, and celebrating that, no matter what else is happening. So, how about holiday greetings from Disney fine artists to all of their fans? YES! YES, THAT’S A GREAT IDEA!…

This love of Disney and joy is evidenced by some of the popular shorts and features embraced during the darkest times in American history. Some of Disney’s earliest Christmas cartoons were released during the Great Depression. 1931’s Mickey’s Orphans, 1932’s Santa’s Workshop and Mickey’s Good Deed, and 1933’s The Night Before Christmas were all not only innovative, but also joyful holiday Disney cartoon shorts. Through the years, Walt Disney Studios has released what have become some of the classic cartoons connected to the season, including the Sorcerer’s Apprentice, which was part of 1940’s Fantasia, Once Upon a Wintertime, released as part of 1948’s Melody Time, Lady and the Tramp, which in 1955 features lovely Christmas scenes, and of course more recent favorites like 2009’s 4-time Emmy winner, Prep & Landing, which you SHOULD ABSOLUTELY SEE! (It’s on Disney+, along with a bunch of other Disney holiday classics, and you can find them HERE) 

Keeping all that history in mind, I am honored that when I put a call out to some of my favorite Disney Fine Artists, many came back with very sweet and appreciative holiday wishes to their collectors and fans! Below are their names and some of their best official Disney limited editions available to collectors, which you can click to see their whole collection.

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WILLIAM SILVERS

“So often around the holidays, it takes such effort to really get into the spirit, we are in such a whirlwind preparing for Disney art events and shows. Then Ewa and I realize how incredibly lucky we are to be a part of this Disney family. Collectors are so generous and so kind to us, and say such wonderful things about the art I create, it brings us right back to why we celebrate the season. It’s about family, and kindness, and gratitude. We want to take this time to thank all of you for being so supportive of my work and to all my fellow artists that create Disney images. Disney is about finding joy, and that’s exactly what the holidays are about.

Thank you all for all your support and kindness, and for all the time I get to spend with the collectors who support my art. I look forward to a great new year, creating more art, and meeting more of you. Happy Holidays!

Bill Silvers & Ewa Podolska-Silvers”

HEATHER EDWARDS

“I am so lucky to be able to say that I love the people I get to work with at Disney Fine Art and every one of you who have come into my life over the years. A little over a decade ago, if you’d told me I would be working with Michael and his amazing team at DFA creating Disney artwork, I probably would’ve laughed. How awesome is it that I have been blessed to work with such good people and stories that are so beloved! It has truly been a gift to me. I hope and strive to return that gift to all of you through painting in the decades to come.

Humbly yours and the Happiest of Holidays,

Heather Edwards”

CRAIG SKAGGS

“It’s hard to believe it’s time for decorations, carols, and holiday get-togethers already. It’s been such a busy year of creating new work, this year seemed to go by in a blink.Next year is already looking like it’s going to be even busier. I can’t thank my fans enough for their continued support. Rest assured I’ll continue to push myself to produce the best possible Disney art I can to keep those smiles and dreams alive.

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, peace and love to everyone!

Craig Skaggs”

TIM ROGERSON

“It still blows my mind that I get to do what I love everyday, the thing I’ve done ever since I could first hold a pencil, and that’s to bring my favorite characters to life through art. It’s only been possible because of all the love and support I’ve received these past 20 years from galleries and collectors all over the world. I’m forever grateful. To Leslie at ArtInsights and to all her collectors, I wish you all a Merry Christmas, a Happy Hanukkah, and a new year filled with happiness and amazing art!

Cheers, Tim”

MICHELLE ST. LAURENT

“Happy Holidays to all! This has been a very busy year of creating many new Disney Fine Art original paintings and Limited Editions. Thank you so much to all my collectors who love and appreciate the art so much. All the hard work really is a dream come true and I love sharing it with all of you.

See you real soon, Michelle”

VICTORIA YING

“As 2023 comes to a close, I want to reflect on my artisticjourney so far. I’m so grateful to Disney and the Disney community for being a huge part of my creative life and continuing to inspire me as I go forward to tell my own stories. Without Disney, I wouldn’t have had the grounding to understand storytelling and creating magic. I’ll always be proud of the time I spent at the studios helping create timeless tales with incredible teams. Thank you, to every member of this community who has made it possible to make beautiful things.

Victoria”

GREG MCCULLOUGH

““Dreams come true …when the work is put forth.” We are living the dream.Thanks to all our fans and collectors who make it possible.We are so ever grateful.We wish you all a joyful holiday and may all your wishes come true.

Greg and Nath McCullough”

JOHN ROWE

“Wishing everyone a happy holiday, Christmas, winter, day off, and new year season! All the best to you all!

John Rowe”

 

DENYSE KLETTE

 

“I love this time of year. Being able to see family and friends is the part I cherish the most. Living in Canada our Christmas season is usually always white and chilly. One of our traditions is homemade hot chocolate with alot of marshmallows after a day of skiing. Sometimes with a little extra something. Our Disney tree is up and shining bright and the gifts are showing up underneath. This year has flown by with all the Disney events and shows. I can’t tell you how much I love creating the art for the different galleries. I think one of my favorite part is seeing my prints on the Shop Disney site. Its a pinch me moment. I am grateful everyday that this is how I making my living. Merry Christmas to everyone.

Denyse”

RODEL GONZALEZ

“I’m humbled waking up every morning knowing that I’m able to do what I love to do. It’s an added blessing knowing that I can create Disney, Star Wars and Marvel art aside from my own fine art. In this season I wish all the best to the Disney collectors, galleries, and fans from all over the world that have collected my artwork… I feel super grateful and blessed to have had all your support through the years. Merry Christmas and Happy 2024!

Rodel Gonzales”

JIM SALVATI

“I paint Disney art for grown ups! My new Soul work is the perfect example of grown up art . Soul is being released again next year, and I have some new cool pieces coming, even a silk screened piece. Happy Holidays!

Jim Salvati”

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We at ArtInsights wish you happy days, holidays and beyond, and a very safe and prosperous new year for 2024. We feel incredibly fortunate that we’ve been so successful, not only in our gallery space for the last 30 years, but now in our new hybrid model. And, REALLY, we couldn’t do it, we couldn’t work staring at nature and with cats curled up nearby, without you. You, our loyal clients, have bought great art and supported us through all the best and worst years, and we are humbled and so appreciative that you trust us and honor us with your support. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you! and now it’s on to 2024. The best is yet to come!

Love, peace, and joy,

Leslie and Michael (and T’Challa and Lobo, our home gallery cat-interns!)

Greg McCullough is one of the most beloved artists working today, and has a strong following of collectors who seek him out at his Disney events throughout the year. He releases art regularly, and those pieces are only available directly through Disney at his events. Greg has been working in the film and animation industry and as an illustrator since we was a teen. He learned his love of art from his family, and continues to seek joy through art every day with his artistic collaborations and life experiences with his wife, Nathalie. ArtInsights has the honor of exclusively representing art by Greg through “The Archive of Disney Editions by Greg McCullough”. As part of the release of these vintage, sold out images to our collectors, we spoke to Greg about his career and what brings him joy in this exclusive interview:

You worked as a caricature artist at Six Flags Over Texas as a teen. Can you talk a bit about your love of art and how it began as a younger child that led to Six Flags?

Greg McCullough: I was inundated with things that inspired creativity from the start. My mom had a 1964 Childcraft Encyclopedia Set with one book “Make and Do”, and my mom and I concentrated on that. There were things like “How to carve a turtle from a bar of soap”. My grandfather taught me to build with tools, and I loved spending time with them doing crafts. I taught my fellow kindergarteners how to draw a teepee. “Seek and Find” books gave me a love of black and white line work. I still have some of the early drawings of spacecrafts I did.

I worked at Six Flags in 1978, when I was still a teenager, and I did caricatures of their guests. I did that for 3 summers, but also continued to do caricatures at events and conventions for many years.

My dad’s parents were really into art. They were Norman Rockwell collectors, to which I am still tightly bound as an artist.

Who were your biggest influences as a fledgling artist and who inspires you now, and why?

When I was a teenager, I loved the work of Mort Drucker of Mad Magazine, animator Chuck Jones, and Bernie Wrighson, who did the best horror comics. When I started doing illustration and was looking to the best advertising illustrators in history, I was inspired by CF Payne, Bill Mayer, Chuck Slack, Dave Willardson and John Hammagai. In terms of design, I’ll always look to JC Leyendecker for his style, color, and boldness. In terms of living artists, I love James Tennison, because he has an amazing amount of color everywhere, and he had an uncanny ability to draw what he sees, and someone who passed away recently, but will always be an inspiration in terms of style and business savvy, is John Howard Sanden.

I’m now full circle to Norman Rockwell, and study both his work and the the work of Leyendecker in my paintings, and I think I’ll always be inspired by them. They’re the best of the best in the history of illustration fine artists.

You started Artifx Studio in 1994, and did commercial work for some very high profile clients. How did illustrating in the commercial space feed your artistic soul, and what are your favorite projects from that time?

I’ve always been a technician, drawing fun things while mercilessly pushing my artistic skills. I started oil painting around 2003, and painting in oils is closest I’ve come to feeling what I paint. In terms of my favorite projects, there are so many! I did a huge Looney Tunes project of 30-plus illustrations for Frito Lay in 1994. I Bought my first house via Bugs Bunny! I loved my work for McDonalds, which lasted for 5 years, and It’s been a complete honor doing anything involving Disney and Pixar.

Greg McCullough art for Frito Lay:

Speaking of them, what are some of the best highlights from your work with Disney and Pixar, in terms of how it has advanced your style and aesthetic as an artist? What brings you joy in your work with Disney?

When I was finishing up illustrations for the Toy Story 2 packaging for Mattel, I got an email from John Lasseter asking for prints of my Toy Story/Mattel illustrations for his personal collection. Working for Disney and Pixar brought respect to Artifx, and allowed me to have better choice in terms of the projects I took on.

I have found working full-time as an artist, showing and signing at the Art of Disney, has allowed me to give back at levels I never would have considered. I am fortunate beyond comprehension. Seeing a smile on others bring me joy, and I am told repeatedly, often on a daily basis, how my paintings bring a smile. What could possibly be better than that?

What outside of the creating of art itself, best feeds your inspiration and joy as a creative person?

I spent my formable, elementary days on my grandfather’s farm in Texas. Nature, pine trees, and oxygen are my plug-ins to truly charge up my depleted batteries. My wife Nath and I spent three years RV’ing up the Appalachian Mountains into Quebec from Orlando, and then turning right at New Mexico, exploring Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Canadian Rockies and setting for three months in Banff Canada.

What imagery or work have you not yet done as an artist you’d still like to tackle?

Personally I am at the beginning of what I’m calling “ROCKWELL ERA”. That started last year with Rockwell inspired “charcoals”  and SOO very excited to see how far and where this leads!

(For further explanation of Greg McCullough’s “Rockwell Era”, here’s a quote from his facebook page:

“Last November I spent 4 life changing days scouring the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge MA. I wanted to know “How he did what he did, so fast, so perfect and still had fun?” For me, the missing puzzle piece is simple but not easy. For every painting, Norman Rockwell created a fully rendered charcoal drawing at the size of his final canvas, approximately 30″x40″. It’s a huge, messy job that my ego, laziness and all my time spent gathering copious amounts of reference told me from a tight sketch and lots of reference, I can figure out everything needed as I paint the final canvas. I was mistaken! It’s been a real challenge!”

I also believe the time is close, though long awaited, to begin to do relief sculpts of my most popular paintings. Doing what I love every day really means my creative spirit is always being fed, and I’m always looking to the newest way to express what’s inside me as an artist. Talking to fans and collectors is also endlessly inspiring. As I said, I’m grateful every day.

Below see some ArtInsights exclusives now available on our website. You can see all of Greg McCullough’s images by clicking HERE.

As part of our Peanuts art special event, “Halloween in August” featuring the new limited edition The Great Pumpkin, award-winning animation director and artist Larry Leichliter added layout drawings to original vintage cels that needed context.

Here’s one example:

He is also creating original drawings based on two images from It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown for folks who buy art during our event, which includes the new limited edition, The Great Pumpkin.

The limited is based on the cover by Ed Levitt for a storybook created in conjunction with the release of It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. (You can read more about Ed on our blog about him HERE.

We at ArtInsights went through the whole movie in order to pick one great image that would inspire him and he could use, but we sent him about a dozen screen caps, and it was so hard for him to choose, he wound up choosing two, both of which are wonderful….

These images are then the basis for original drawings created for collectors who buy art during our show, given as a special gift. (Only one per household, and only until September 2nd. We don’t want to take advantage of his kindness or have him doing this forever!)

We caught up with Larry and talked to him about his experience as an artistic kid in LA, his memories of Halloween and It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown specifically, and what inspired him most during his years working with Bill Melendez and company, and animating at Bill Melendez Studios, where the Peanuts cartoons were made.

Did you see animated features as a kid?

Larry Leichliter: I think I remember seeing Bambi or Pinocchio at the movie theater. I always liked to draw as a kid, and the Disney films in particular inspired me to draw. I remember I also used to draw the characters from Lady and the Tramp a lot. Copying characters from those cartoons represented my early attempts at outlines, but it wasn’t until much later, though, that I actually learned how to draw. In school, whether it’s life drawing or cartoons, you understand you’re drawing volumes and forms first, to get proportions, and then you do the details.

Did you learn squash and stretch from classes or from watching cartoons?

It’s one of the first things you learn, and I don’t even remember where I first heard the terms and learn the concept, but I do remember as a kid, making flip books. The first kind of flip book that I made was, you take a pencil, and you roll up a piece of paper on the pencil, then you could make a drawing on the piece of paper underneath, and pull the pencil down and unroll the paper that you had rolled up on the pencil, and make another drawing, and you can run the pencil up and down, and paper would curl up on the pencil, and you could make those two drawings animate. That was my first foray into animation.

You’ve always had a love of Peanuts, and you even have proof from your own career…

I do! This is the lunchbox that I took to work every day, no matter where I worked, whether it was a Disney or Warner Brothers or any other studio, but a friend of my wife’s gave this to her, it was her son’s, and he gave it to her because he knew that I worked on Peanuts cartoons, and from that point on, in fact, even while I was working at Melendez Studios, I would take my lunch to work in that lunchbox every day, so people got to know me as the Peanuts guy.

How much do you refer to Schultz’s drawings, and how much to the earlier Melendez cartoons, in terms of creating Snoopy and other Peanuts characters on-model? firstly, when you were working on the cartoons, and secondly, for the layouts that you do now, as part of the limited editions?

Schultz is always my first reference, because I can’t say enough about his sense of design, and how ideal these characters are, in terms of their design. They’re simple, and yet very expressive, and in some ways, easy to draw, but in other ways, you have to pay attention, so I do refer to his drawings frequently. There was a fellow who worked for Bill in the early days, his name was Frank Smith, and he did the original model sheets for the studio. I use the copy I have of his model sheets all the time. They sit on my desk.

You have that for every character? I’d love to have that, as would every collector, I’m sure!

Yeah, they have all poses of the different characters. I have the first model sheet I received when I started working there back in 1970, and it’s something I’ve kept the entire time, because it’s such a great model sheet. The drawings look so much like Schultz’s drawings. They’re just really well-drawn, and that was Frank Smith. The other thing I do, when I get a cel or drawing that needs a flesh-out out background or a layout,  I’ll go and look at the film, and then I’ll look at the original artwork produced by the studio to try and recreate what it actually looked like in the film, using the original art as reference, as well as whatever other information I can gather from research. That’s how I put layouts or the look of limited editions together.

Can you name any mentors that were helpful when you worked for Bill Melendez?

First and foremost, I’d say Al Pabian. He was a wonderful guy. I started at the studio as an assistant animator, and Al was the lead assistant animator, so sharing an office with him was a real opportunity for me, because he gave me a lot of the introductory information that I needed to get a handle on how to draw the characters and what to look out for and stuff like that. Beyond that, I’d have to say Don Lusk, although he only worked at the studio a few years. He had the office right next to mine. We were actually situated in houses. There were three houses on Larchmont Boulevard. Al Pabian and I had a bedroom in the back with a window that looked out on the backyard, which was paved, and we used for a parking lot. I remember, there were two bathrooms, maybe three or four bedrooms, and a kitchen.

Don Lusk had his office to himself in another bedroom, right next to ours, and I could go in and chat with him every once in a while. One of the things he told me when we were talking about animation was that he liked, when he started a scene, he would think about how to motivate the character, and what was going to get the thing moving. He said, “I like to throw the character off balance, and then see what he does.” When I look at his scenes, there’s a lot of movement in them, because the character is always off balance and trying to regain his balance in some way. It may not be really slapstick, although many times it was, sometimes it was just emotional, but the movement, the characters being out of balance, was always part of what he would do. That turned out to be essential, and an interesting introduction to me for how to begin animating.

When you create a layout behind a production cel to give it context, how do you go about that without being too distracting? I’m thinking of the scene with Snoopy in the supermarket, during the Joe Cool sequence in There’s No Time for Love, Charlie Brown.

Like you say, you don’t want the background or other elements in the background to be so interesting that they distract you from the main character, or what the action is in in the scene. The great thing about the design of the show, and again, this goes back to Schultz and how he inspired all of the artists that work on the show, is that the style of drawing throughout the specials is usually very clean and simple, sometimes even stylized. A circle will not be a true circle, it’ll be this kind of oval. A box will not be a straight square box, it’ll be somewhat off. So that scene that you’re talking about in the grocery store, there were all these grocery carts and there’s a lot of cross-hatching going on, but there is a way to do it where you get the pattern, and it’s fairly detailed, but it’s not overly distracting.

What do you remember, yourself, about the Halloween special?

When the Christmas special came out, I was in high school already, and we looked forward to it with great anticipation. My brother and sister and I all sat down in front of the television and watched it.  When the Halloween special came out, I didn’t know about it ahead of time, so I went to school the next day, and everybody was talking about it, and all the great scenes with Snoopy fighting the Red Baron, and the trick or treating, and I was like Charlie Brown, like I got a rock. I had missed it. So I never missed it after that, the next year and every year following, because, you know, we were all big fans of the Peanuts books. I still have several of them from back then that I keep on my office shelf.

Did you love horror movies and watch them? If so, what was the first one?

Oh definitely. It’s hard to remember which one I saw first, but I remember seeing and loving The Blob, with Steve McQueen, and The Night of the Living Dead, which is a great movie and still a favorite, but that was later in the 60s.

I love that horror movies offer an opportunity for the writer and director to speak to subjects with societal importance and can make social commentary, which is true for both The Night of the Living Dead and Invasion of the Body Snatchers, but also so many others, but that’s also true in the case for Schulz’s Peanuts comic strips. They have that in common.

Yeah, that’s one of the best things about both. I grew up in Los Angeles, and a lot of those old B movies were made at various locations in LA, but one of the most popular was Griffith Park. And you’re mentioning Invasion of the Body Snatchers. There was a set of caves up in the hills in in Griffith Park, that you could just walk up a slight hill and come to. It was big and went all the way through this small hill, and opened up into sort of a natural amphitheater. It was it was an interesting place to play, which I did a lot, and that cave is in Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

You actually have a connection to It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown as an artist.

Yes! One of the first chances that I had to work on Snoopy as the flying ace and so many other Peanuts characters at Halloween was this book of It’s Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown from the 70s. I drew most of the drawings in it based on the film. Doing these images really took me back to the many times I watched the cartoon.

What came up?

Well, I was reminded of one of my favorite moments, which is when Sally says, “”Are you sure it’s legal? I wouldn’t want to get accused of taking part in a rumble.” Sally has so many great lines in that cartoon.

Things like this didn’t occur to me until later, watching the show, but there’s this conversation between Sally and Linus in the pumpkin patch that I’m in love with, because the animator who worked on it and the kids who did the voices, they were just so in sync with each other. The acting by the kid who played Sally, and the simple, subtle gestures with her head and with her looks to the side fit so well with the attitude in the dialogue. I asked Bill one day, “Who animated that scene?”, and he said it was Ruth Kissane, who was, I think, the only female animator at the studio in those days, and it’s just wonderful.

My favorite line was “If anyone had told me I’d be waiting in a pumpkin patch on Halloween night I’d have said they were crazy.”

What do you tell kids or people going into animation in terms of advice?

I never did well in interviews. Somebody would recommend me for a job, so they’d call me in, I’d go in, and have an interview, and I wouldn’t get the job because I was so bad in interviews. But the fact that somebody I worked with thought enough of my work and of me to recommend me made all the difference. It opened up a lot of opportunities for me. So what I tell people when I’m teaching classes is to be sure and make friends. Get to know the people that you’re working with. I don’t think people really need to be advised of that, because for most folks it’s something that just comes naturally, but artists can be reserved. If you’re shy, like I am, and tend to keep to yourself, try to break out of that. Try to get to know people. That’s what’s really going to help you along.

You can read more about the new limited edition “The Great Pumpkin”, or buy it (and, for a limited time, get an original drawing by Larry Leichliter!) by clicking on the image below:

To finish off our blog and interview, here’s a video of Larry showing us all how to draw Snoopy doing his happy dance:

Heroes have generally meant one thing in comics, cartoons, and film. They are the people from other worlds with superhuman strength like Superman, or tortured souls with dark pasts who choose to keep crime-ridden streets safe like Luke Cage and Batman, gods and goddesses like Thor and Wonder Woman, or people thrown into the role by a series of unfortunate events, like Captain Marvel, Spider-Man, and Black Panther. 

There’s a lot of talk about heroes these days, and what it means to be one in real life. We’ve always thought of firefighters and those in what we used to call “the front lines”. The COVID pandemic has opened the world’s eyes to the bravery of doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, ambulance drivers, grocery checkers, teachers, mail people, and a host of other folk who are risking their lives to save others, help people stay food secure, and getting us all through this chaotic, unfortunate, very bad, not so good historic experience. 

Some chose those roles long ago. There’s no denying running into a burning building is a fearless, heroic thing to do. Doctors and nurses care for the sick with unwavering compassion and commitment, often working more hours than any human should be expected to work. The grocery clerks, teachers, mail people and many others around us didn’t realize they’d have to put their lives on the line just to keep food on their own tables. They are the Spider-Men and Captain Marvels of our new reality. 

With all that in mind, we at ArtInsights decided we’d like to donate 10% of sales of all superhero art, now through June 1st to COVID-19 relief efforts and support. 

In addition, this week’s Wednesday Wonders will be a sale of 10% off of select heroes art!

This includes Alex Ross limited editions. This includes a number of sold out Artist Proofs (or APs) and exclusive images you can’t get anywhere else. So our clients and friends get 10% off, and we also donate another 10% to relief and support to REAL LIFE HEROES who are helping the fight against this pandemic, and who are keeping us safe.

CLICK HERE TO SEE ALL THE HEROES IN OUR SPECIAL COLLECTION.

Whether or not the art is ‘on sale”, which will only be from Wednesday to Friday at 11:59pm, we will be donating 10% to charity. 

Our choices are: 

DIRECT RELIEF :  Direct Relief is a humanitarian aid organization, active in all 50 states and more than 80 countries, with a mission to improve the health and lives of people affected by poverty or emergencies – without regard to politics, religion, or ability to pay. They are coordinating with public health authorities, nonprofit organizations and businesses in the U.S. and globally to provide personal protective equipment and essential medical items to health workers responding to coronavirus (COVID-19).

NURSES HOUSE: Nurses House has partnered with the American Nurses Foundation to help nurses nationwide affected by COVID-19. Through July 31, 2020, Nurses House will be accepting applications from RNs, LPNs and LVNs who are unable to work due to a COVID-19 infection, caring for a family member with COVID-19, or are under employer mandated quarantine. In order to help as many nurses as possible, they desperately need our support. 

*If you’d like us to donate to another cause that relates to the pandemic, please let us know, and we’ll send the donation there. 

As many of you know, we’ve had a good relationship with the Alex Ross representatives, and have been fortunate to get many artist proofs of Alex Ross releases, as well as exclusive Alex Ross art in our gallery. The artist has always celebrated heroes, with his visually dramatic imagery, and love of comic book history. We love his Thor, and all his Marvel superheroes. We especially love the Alex Ross Avengers art, but we also have a soft spot for Alex Ross Batman images. 

If you know us, you also know we love the aspirational quality of Jim Lee’s personal story, and his very vivid, compelling art. We all know Jim Lee does it for the love of comics. Who else would make a mint selling a comic company only to keep working in the business? They didn’t name him one of the leaders of DC Comics for nothing!

The Jim Lee art we are offering at 10% discount between Wednesday and Friday night are our favorite Jim Lee Hush art and a release of Batman’s 80th Anniversary Jim Lee art, as well as Trinity, which celebrates Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. 

**A WORD ABOUT ALEX ROSS APs and JIM LEE APs**

There is a reason so many fans clammer for Alex Ross and Jim Lee AP1s. APs, in and of themselves, are no longer intrinsically worth more than a regular edition. Originally, when limited edition art was created, it was done by hand, and the lower the number, the more paint there would be on the paper, so getting a lower number would mean a better image. Now that limited editions are made through the giclee process, there’s no difference between #1 and #100.

HOWEVER: If a collector is buying a piece from a series and they can get either #1 or AP1, if they ever want to sell it, it will be FAR easier to sell than any other numbers in the series.  Also, when you have an edition, the APs are a smaller subset (there are usually 5, 10, or 25 artist proofs in any edition). So that makes them a bit more special. I don’t believe getting AP2 through any other number is a big deal, or even worth buying for more money, unless the rest of the edition is sold out and you are able to at least get an image. Then it makes a lot of sense. If you can buy AP1 or the #1 in any edition, though, that’s pretty great. It might cost a bit more, but as mentioned before, it will be a lot easier to sell later if you (or your progeny) should ever want to sell. 

Also part of this assortment are a few special pieces. We have ONE original production cel of The Powerpuff Girls signed by the creator of the show.

We know Disney would approve we are offering some SOLD OUT images of Anna and Elsa from Disney’s Frozen. We thought we’d add them for folks who like their heroes on the softer side, although, needless to say, Elsa can be pretty fierce! Honestly, we included Anna and Elsa because one of our friends is a nurse who also cosplays Elsa, so it is a tribute to her, as she is currently living apart from her family and working around the clock at hospital, helping COVID patients.

(She hasn’t sung “The COVID never bothered me anyway”, because there’s not much joy where she is right now.) To her, it’s all in a day’s work, even if it’s scary work without proper equipment. Still, we want to recognize her bravery, even if she doesn’t.  Lastly, we included a piece by John Alvin, because he was always very supportive of charity partnerships, and he’d want to do all he could to support our heroes. Andrea Alvin feels the same way. The Cold of Hoth is great John Alvin Star Wars art, and it will be discounted from Wednesday to Friday night and included in the heroes assortment. 

As to our COVID Cartoon Comfort? This week, we are sending you The Powerpuff Girls singing “Love Makes the World Go Round”, but with Icelandic subtitles. Iceland is a heroic country right now!

The country has done more testing of their population for the Coronavirus than any other country, and they’ve discovered that at any given time, half the population that has the disease aren’t showing any symptoms. 

So this cartoon is also a reminder that loving each other means keeping each other safe! All the best to you,

your friends at ArtInsights.