Just before it closed , my son and I toured the art and history installation in NYC “Mickey – The True Original Exhibition”. The “Pop-up” (it popped up for 4 months) was located (it will have closed by the time you read this) right at the dividing line between the Meat Packing District and Chelsea in the lower west side of Manhattan.
Turning the corner of 15th St at 10th Ave, on a cold, wet day, this pop-up was no secret.
Walking along the glass wall toward the entrance at the end of the street, we could see into the inevitable gift shop that awaited us at the end of the exhibit.
Through the door we checked in with our tickets and were given a souvenir button. We had hoped for a coat check. But, alas, they offered us only mesh shopping bags to carry our coats.
There were photo ops here and throughout the exhibit as well as an overview of the entire exhibition. They used our phones or cameras since there was no Photopass option.
In typical Disney attraction fashion, a cast member held us at the door before we entered, what turned out to be, (you guessed it) – a pre-show.
After a short wait, anyone waiting in the outer lobby was ushered in where we were greeted, warmly, by another cast member.
Then we were shown this short video. (too wide for me to get all of it in the very shallow room):
In Disney fashion, a door opened at the side of the room and we entered the actual exhibition. I have over 300 pictures so I give you some of my favorites here in this post. The rest I will put up on this page.
The next section focused on Steamboat Willie. In the small theater they showed an artists recreation of the film using modern art techniques, side by side with the original.
Next area included more photo ops and some very inventive art pieces which, when viewed from the right spot allowed all the disconnected images to be viewed as one.
There was also a salute to Plane Crazy. Although released after Steamboat Willie, it was the first Mickey Cartoon, but failed to attract a distributor
Next up was a narrow hallway paying tribute to the Ink and Paint Department. There’s a great book Ink and Paint – The Women of Walt Disney’s Animation, that goes into great detail about this unsung department, and its’ people, mostly women, who were so critical to the success of Disney Animation
More art of all kinds
Then we passed through a portal, into the world of Sorcerer Mickey
Two circular stands showed these animation clips
The next room was devoted to The Mickey Mouse Club. Costumes and props from the original series were displayed, music played, and video of the 80s Mickey Mouse club were shown on monitors. There was also free ice cream.
Some of my favorite pieces were scattered throughout the next room, including a famous Keith Haring.
This was one of the favorite pieces in the show. Very inventive and mesmerizing.
Walking under this interested doorway adornment, brought us to a diverse collection of Mickey items curated by the Disney Archives.
There were many other amazing items. Please check out this page for more of the exhibit photos. A final photo op
Then. . . Please exit through the gift shop. I didn’t take too many pics here. There were some things I hadn’t seen before, some with the exhibit logo and others which are available elsewhere.
I bought these, mostly because of the packaging.
They had one more artistic surprise waiting for us inside the gift shop.
It’s very hard with photos to properly give you the full experience. The “cavern” was about 25’x25′ and we were completely surrounded by all of this.
This was a wonderful experience. Just large enough to provide an incredibly diverse art exhibit and Disneyana. But, small enough so we were done, even with pictures, ice cream and taking our time to see all of it in about 90 minutes, without feeling exhausted. I’ve posted more photos here.
I hope, for those of you who didn’t have an opportunity to experience the exhibition, I’ve given you a good feel, even with my mediocre photography.
The Disney Connection 
Comments on: "A Visit to “Mickey, the True Original” Exhibition" (2)
Sorry I missed it. Thanks
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You’re welcome. Thanks for stopping by
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