Have you ever been to the Presidio in San Francisco? It’s a park and former military base on the northern tip of the peninsula that makes up the whole city.
It’s recognizable by the red ceramic tiled roofs of the buildings, which are mostly former military offices and barracks. Now many of them are home to museums, schools and businesses, like Lucasfilm (yup, Star Wars), which has a large presence there.
Yesterday El Hub and I drove down to hit up The Walt Disney Family Museum, which we’d never visited before, and we’re both huge Disney fans.
We arrived to a pleasant surprise.
FOOD!
Off The Grid is this big jamboree of fancy food trucks and food stands. Lots of interesting, eclectic eats. They hold them in a few different parts of the Bay Area, usually one day a week. We didn’t know this ahead of time, but it was being held yesterday right across from the museum.
I ended up having a wild sea bass salmon roll for lunch and a salted caramel creme brulee for dessert. El Hub had a mixed plate of Vietnamese-style barbecue chicken and rice.
After that, with full tummies, we headed to the museum.
I’d wanted to go to the museum because yesterday was the final day of their Mary Blair exhibit.
Mary Blair was an influential member of the Disney animation team during the ’40s and ’50s era. Classically trained as a fine artist, she was known for bringing a very colorful, playful artistic style. Among her many contributions to the Disney movies from that time, she also designed the theme and artwork for Disneyland’s It’s a Small World.
What a fantastic exhibit and I came away feeling inspired.
Much of Mary’s artwork conveys a child-like sense of wonder that I want to channel myself, but it’s tough sometimes, you know, when it’s buried under so much boring blah-blah-blah adult stuff.
By the time we finished studying Mary’s exhibit, El Hub and I were starting to get a little tired, so we sped through the rest of the museum, which is really worth an entire trip, just for the backstory on Disney’s beginnings (and Mr. Disney’s life before he’d ever drawn his first Mickey Mouse 
).
In the ’20s, ’30s and ’40s, especially, the Disney company pioneered many of the cartoon and animation techniques that are still in use around the world today.
I definitely plan to go back when I need some of that patented Disney magic. 🙂
Looks like a cool place to visit! Btw, I love your striped dress/ cat Vans outfit!
Another Disney fangirl over here. I never heard of Mary Blair before! How cool that she created It’s a Small World at Disneyland. Oh, but that song.
That is so neat! I love museums of any kind! And I miss the variety of food trucks the Bay Area had!
I’ve always been a Disney fan, I love the picture from Peter Pan!
Now THAT looks like fun 🙂
So super cool! Thank you for this post <3 This makes me thankful for creative people, that work is magic!
LOVE the Walt Disney museum. My firm had its Xmas party there a couple of years ago. We had full run of the whole museum all night long. It was SO much fun, but I want / need to go back! I know there’s still more to see. One of my favorite things I saw there were the little golden Oscars for Snow White and the Seven Dwarves – seven teeny-tiny little Oscar statues!
Have you been to the Thursday of the grid at vintage oaks? Starts at 5, conviently by sephora!
Try Pacific Puffs cream puffs. Super good calorific!!
Thank you for sharing this Karen. Disneyland is a very special place for me, always has been. You’ve sparked my interest in Mary Blair as well, and I never knew of her before hand. Thank you!
You’re right, this is really inspirational art. The colors are amazing and I’m really impressed with her skill. The artwork for the show Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends reminds me a little of at least one or two of the Blair pieces that you included. I wouldn’t mind some cool art posts sprinkled throughout MBB, although I know that sometimes photos aren’t allowed.