Mary Blair, the artist, the icon, the woman. (a long thread) Arguably, one of the greatest and most recognizable Disney artists. Despite a challenging upbringing in Morgan Hill, CA she earned a scholarship and attended the Chouinard Art Institute graduating in 1933.

She found her medium in watercolor and quickly became a member of the prestigious California Watercolor Society. She married fellow artist Lee Blair in 1934 sharing a love and penchant for the medium. Two of my favorites from her personal work in the 1930s.

Mary and Lee clearly knew how to have fun from their wedding day and beyond.

A quick aside for Lee, a wonderful artist in his own right. Here are a couple great pieces by him including my favorite one of Mary.

Most interestingly, Lee won a Gold Olympic medal for this painting, “Rodeo” at the 1932 Summer Games in LA! He is one of two people to ever win for watercolor in the brief period from 1912 to 1948 that the arts were included on the games. Amazing!

They both ended worked for Ub Iwerks’ studio in the 1930s before moving on to Walt Disney Animation: Lee in 1939 and Mary in 1940 working alongside their brother, famed animator, Preston Blair. He worked for Universal, Walt Disney, MGM with Tex Avery, and even w/ Hannah Barbera.

It was in this early time at Disney that Mary fine-tuned her classic style. Mary and Lee both accompanied Walt on his famed goodwill tour of South America. A piece from each of them at this time.

Mary’s simple style and masterful use of color came through to capture the vibrant cultures they were witnessing. These would become inspirational for a lifetime of work and for the package films, Saludos Amigos and The Three Caballeros.

Walt Disney came to love Mary’s style and continually called on her to contribute to his films and later projects. Here they are in South America riding the best two-person bicycle ever!

By the late 1940s and into the 50s Mary became ever busier putting her unique color styling and simplistic concepts to work inspiring the tone of films such as Johnny Appleseed.

Cinderella

Alice In Wonderland

Peter Pan. After this film she resigned from Disney and worked freelance for a number of years.

She would have a successful commercial career designing ads for various brands with her distinct childlike charm. She gained her love for painting children from her two sons at home.

She worked with a variety of brands including Dutch Boy Paints, Baker’s Chocolate, and Meadow Gold dairy. I love how her style captures the excitement of the children.

Even cigarette brand Pall Mall was brightened up with her distinct colors and blocking!

In the early 1960s Walt Disney asked Mary back to work on an attraction for the 1964 New York World’s Fair as he knew no one else would capture the child-like wonder and style needed for the experience. Enter “it’s a small world” sponsored by Pepsi-Cola benefiting UNICEF.

Further concept art and design.

Despite the intense workload, high stress, and tight deadlines, Walt and other the others at WED smiled when looking at the designs Mary created. She stated, “This is the most interesting job I’ve ever had. The results are more delightful than anything I’ve tried before. “

This attraction was a great success and has ended up in Disney theme parks around the world spreading the message of positivity and world-connectivity across generations and borders alike.

Mary would continue on working with the Disney Co. even after Walt’s death in 1966. He had arranged to involve her in two large-scale projects. She created two murals in Tomorrowland in 1967 and her famed mural in the Contemporary Resort at Walt Disney World in 1971.

Walt’s death was somewhat of a turning point for Mary, however. She was destroyed emotionally and never quite worked the same again. After the Contemporary Resort mural she had no new commissions from the Disney Co or elsewhere. However, she continued to paint.

She struggled with illness and alcoholism for the next several years passing away of a cerebral hemorrhage July 26 1978. She had a rough start and a crushingly sad end to her story but her life is so much more. She is fondly remembered and highly regarded as a person and artist.

Mary Blair, despite the dark parts of her life, was able to create light and love in her works of art. She was able to inspire wonder, connectivity, and kindness through her unique ability to create images that make the imagination and heart soar.
Thanks for everything, Mary.