w1tch:

everyone’s all KORRA, HOMESTUCK, SUPERNATURAL and i’m just over here like

The person who has made the most significant impact on my development as an artist and whose inspiration has continually surfaced from within the confinements of each of my sketchbooks is one who is considered to be no longer among the living but whose legacy and ideals remain instilled within the hearts of emerging artists and animators of the 21st century. 

Walt Disney serves to be my inspiration as an artist because (being just a tad bit naïve in the past to notice), he grew up right alongside me as I further developed my skills as an artist and (symbolically of course) even witnessed the birth of my budding interest in the arts. First it was the films; the old princess classics that most today would probably brush off as old news compared to the more advanced films being released into the cinema world. ‘Pocahontas’ was the favorite back-in-the-day (mainly because of the biscuit-eating raccoon and his ill-tempered sidekick hummingbird) which slowly evolved into ‘Beauty and the Beast’—hours upon hours of me plopping down in front of the television in my parent’s bedroom, remote at the ready to shut-off the VCR as soon as another human-being stepped into the room. Both of these led to the multitudes of crayon and marker doodles of animals, and princesses with perfectly symmetrical heads, plump red lips, and two dots—slightly resembling that of a nose. Next were the Barbie dolls: Ariel with her neon red hair and fork accessory and Prince Eric with unnaturally white teeth and his stuffed dog, Max. Time spent away from the television was revolved around these dolls as well as various other stuffed animals that I felt the need to include within the imaginative play for that day. Let’s just say a lot of that role playing ended with Ariel and Prince Eric making out and several stuffed animals being tossed about the room in a hyperactive frenzy—from which even more princess doodles ensued. A prince here, the occasional pink lips there, only this time a more developed nose took shape—though it still had those characteristic solid dots. 

Years passed, markers evolved into colored pencils and then those to Prismacolors, a vital change took place: I began to recognize the significance behind others works (or more specifically Walt Disney’s masterpieces.) I re-watched those classics, only this time not for the story but for the content and animation quality of the film—thus fueling my fascination towards certain aspects of an animated sequence (“notice how the score heightens at the climax of a scene”, “note when a character’s expressions are more exaggerated, the more the audience receives a greater insight into the characters emotions.”) Sketches revolved around the Disney-esque style of drawing transformed into my own signature style of drawing, painting, etc. reflected through each of my works created. 

Though deceased, Walt Disney’s legacy lives on within the hearts of millions—his soul present within each of his animated sequences and miscellaneous sketches—that will continue to inspire future works and forever hold a place in my heart.

An old college entrance essay, ‘who is your inspiration’. Walt Disney forever and always.