The Architecture of Staged Realities
4 September 2021 – 26 March 2022, Het Nieuwe Instituut
Curated by Saskia van Stein
This exhibition approached Disney from different angles, creating divergent storylines. These range from the personality cult surrounding Walt Disney himself, to the problematic ‘heroes’ in his work; from the multimedia experiences that connect cartoons, amusement parks and living rooms, to the time- and location-less architecture of Disneyfied suburbs; and from the performance of a 1960s utopia in the Epcot Center, to the manipulation of the worldview of generations of children. The complexity of the self-proclaimed sorcerer’s apprentice becomes clear through these interpretations of the constant interactions between Disney and the outside world.
Read curator Saskia van Stein on the blueprint loaned by Drawing Matter for the exhibition.
