Inspiring Walt Disney: Cinderella’s Reflection Mug from The Met Museum

Our mug features a detail from Mary Blair’s (American, 1911-1978) endearing concept art for Cinderella (1950). With tattered clothes and blushing cheeks, a dreamy Cinderella peers at her reflection in an ornate mirror, fastening a delicate pink flower to her golden hair. Blair, who joined the Walt Disney Animation Studios in 1940, was an exceptional artist and animator whose whimsical designs realized many of Walt Disney’s visions in brilliant technicolor. This item was created in celebration of Inspiring Walt Disney: The Animation of French Decorative Arts. Presented alongside the 30th anniversary of the animated theatrical release of Beauty and the Beast (1991), the exhibition examines Walt Disney’s personal fascination with European decorative arts and design, and draws new parallels between Walt Disney Animation Studios’ enchanting creations and their artistic models, including Gothic Revival architecture, medieval design, and Rococo-inspired objects.