(Walt Disney Studios, 1953) Original panoramic concept storyboard painting by Eyvind Earle for Sleeping Beauty, depicting Maleficent standing with her scepter in the upper tower room of King Stefan and Queen Leah’s castle, the right side of which prominently features the fateful spinning wheel destined to send Princess Aurora into a deep and unending slumber. Earle’s creation is nothing short of stunning, with his expert use of beautiful pastel colors adding a sense of mysticism and enchantment to the otherwise foreboding scene. The tower’s large windows open to a soft pink sky whilst framing the work’s key subjects: the film’s chief antagonist, the powerful sorceress Maleficent, and the cursed spinning wheel, the film’s climactic plot device that sets the story's final act in motion. Accomplished in gouache on 23 x 9 artist's board, signed in the lower right corner in pink paint, "Eyvind Earle." In fine condition, with tack holes to the corners. Legendary Disney artist Eyvind Earle was Sleeping Beauty's production designer, and Disney gave him a significant amount of freedom in designing the settings and selecting colors for the film. Earle also painted the majority of the backgrounds himself, and his stylistic influence is readily apparent in the final product.
