If you’re anything like me, you’ve been thrilled by all the vintage-inspired art the Walt Disney Company has been releasing on its merchandise and social pages. My favorite things about Disney have always been the art and history behind their storytelling. I even visited the Disney exhibition at the MET last year and have always wanted to see a full Disney archives exhibit! When an exhibition in honor of the hundredth anniversary was announced, especially at a museum that was a short day trip away, I knew I needed to go!
The Franklin Institute is a fairly popular science museum in the Philadelphia area, so you can buy tickets to attend the museum and the Disney exhibit together. Since my family had other plans for part of the day (notably seeing the Escape to Margaritaville matinee at the Walnut Street Theatre), we opted for the reduced-price ticket option to see just the Disney exhibit after the museum’s regular operating hours. You have to stand in two brief lines before entering the exhibit which makes it feel almost like a Disney Parks experience. Once you enter, you’re immediately greeted by a short optional introduction from holograms of Mickey Mouse and Walt himself.
The first room of the exhibit features artifacts from the earliest days of the company before it was even known as Disney Brothers. There are early telegrams, sketches of Oswald, Mickey, and Minnie, and a timeline of the company’s progress that moves you into a room of items from some of Disney’s most iconic films. The Sleeping Beauty and Snow White opening sequence books make a second appearance after being featured in the MET and they’re joined by a Mary Poppins carousel horse, concept art from dozens of popular films, and a model of Winnie the Pooh from Christoper Robin (2019). For the fans of anything classic Disney, this collection is one of the most impressive things you’ll explore.
The “Illusion of Life” room came next, the star pieces being models of several animated characters and costumes from the live-action versions of Little Mermaid and Cruella. The following room was themed around the “spirit of adventure” and included props and costumes from Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise, Marvel, and Star Wars. Even if you’re not super interested in these franchises, you’ll still love the figures of a Porg and BB-8.
One of Disney’s claims to fame is its reinvention of the movie musical, so it was a must for there to be a display of the iconic musical catalog. There were sketches from early sound sequencing, handwritten sheet music, Disney on Broadway playbills, and an interactive display to listen to some rarer finds. It was followed by a display of the inspiration drawn from the natural world. The second half was centered around how real nature inspired the design of the parks, which blended perfectly into a room about bringing these stories to life.
If you’ve watched the Imagineering Story, you’ll find a lot of familiar items in this room, like the original animatronic head for Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln. Not too far away, you could find one of my all-time favorite Disney art pieces. It’s the first-ever sketch of Disneyland that was used to pitch the park to investors in New York since, according to Walt Disney, bank people had “no imagination.” The piece itself looks like a cross between blueprints and what we know today as concept art, and while it looks fairly different than the park we know today, you can see the origins of many of today’s most popular attractions. It’s a gorgeous and detailed piece and you could easily spend minutes trying to take everything in.
After seeing a lot of the concept art and early tech pieces from the development of the theme parks, it’s only natural to see items from the parks themselves! This part of the exhibit includes larger pieces like actual cars from the Matterhorn and Peter Pan’s Flight, as well as smaller props, costume pieces, more art, a ticket book, a name badge, and a manuscript draft of the medallion that greets you as you first enter the park (yes, you know the one!).
The final room of the exhibit displays Disney merchandise and special props from over the years, but the display wrap on each of the cases proved to be just as exciting as the items themselves by including vintage photos and art from multiple decades. One of the hit items in the room was a “Pooh for President” hat, used during the Winnie the Pooh for President days at Disneyland in the 70s. Between the final room and the exit, you could find a few teasers with a small collection of props from upcoming Disney projects, like Peter Pan & Wendy (2023).
Like any Disneyland ride, the exhibition ends in a gift shop. There’s some more general Disney merchandise, but also a small collection of items specifically made for the exhibit. I brought home the official guide to the exhibit, which was a rather large souvenir book that included photos of everything in the exhibit, corresponding text, and even a little more than just what was on display. Plus, it goes well with my existing collection of Disney history and art books!
The Disney 100 Exhibition truly has something for every kind of Disney fan, and even items to entertain guests that may not be as interested. If you’ve attended previous archive exhibitions at the MET or elsewhere, you’ll likely find items you’ve seen before. If this is your first show, the scale of the collection is sure to impress. Want to attend but can’t make it to Philadelphia between now and the end of August? Don’t worry! The Walt Disney Company announced the exhibit will tour to other United States destinations later this year.
Have a terrific day!
