With the opening of Disney’s Art of Animation Resort only a few weeks away, Disney Design Group Artist Bob Holden talks about how Walt Disney Imagineering was a key partner for the creation of this merchandise.


“The Walt Disney Imagineering team was an outstanding partner,” exclaimed Bob. “They provided the art files that we used for the merchandise. The designs that you see on the shirts and other items were lifted directly from artwork that guests will see at the new resort.”


You can see the main art used on merchandise on the outside of Animation Hall, the check-in building at the Resort and the colorful diamond pattern found at the resort as a background for on several items. The shirt images were also taken directly from the resort (look for the Ariel image and others inside Animation Hall).


There will be two pins created for the opening. The open edition pin uses an image of Crush from the Disney•Pixar’s “Finding Nemo” wing. The limited edition pin has an edition size of 500 and will be released at the Ink and Paint Shop in the resort on May 31.


Keep an eye out for future items, Bob said they are still developing retail versions of lamps and shower curtains that are similar to items that will be found in guests’ rooms. Those retail items will be arriving at a future date.