LOT #17224 |
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David Hall - Alice in Wonderland RARE Alice and the Gentleman in Paper Suit Gouache Concept Painting (Walt Disney,...
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Sold on Dec 13, 2025 for:
$5,040.00
Bid Source: HA.com/Live bidder
Description
David Hall - Alice in Wonderland RARE Alice and the Gentleman in Paper Suit Gouache Concept Painting (Walt Disney, c. 1939-40/1951). "David Hall's vision of Wonderland is as fresh and full of imagination and ingenuity as the story it illustrates." Film historian Brian Sibley's words merely hint at the grandeur presented within this rare and finely detailed preproduction concept painting by skilled illustrator and storyman David Hall (1905-1964) for an early version of Disney's Alice in Wonderland. Walt was a well-known longtime fan of Lewis Carroll's Alice novels, prevalently displayed throughout his early work in both the final production with his first animation endeavor at Laugh-O-Gram Studios in the early 1920s and through the remainder of the decade in Disney Studio's first film series the Alice Comedies. So it was little surprise when he formally registered the title Alice in Wonderland with the Motion Picture Association of America post-Snow White's success in 1938, and began serious preliminary work on the project. Illustrator David Hall would soon join the Studio, producing more than 400 paintings, drawings, and sketches for the feature's development during his surprisingly short tenure from March 1, 1939 through the following June 1st. Adapting elements and plot points from both Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass, each of Hall's concepts presents a small masterpiece of storytelling. This concept features a Looking-Glass scene that was ultimately cut from Disney's 1951 adaptation, where Alice shares a train carriage with The Gentleman in Paper Suit; and then upon their arrival to the fourth-square, the train wondrously manages to jump over a brook as Hall exquisitely depicts here. The concept has been rendered in gouache and sealed with clear varnish to a dynamic image area of 10.5" x 8" filling the vast majority of the 12 field 5-peghole background board. October 1939 would see a Leica Reel produced featuring a large amount of Hall's Alice work presented for Walt's approval to proceed with production, however the project was ultimately shelved for a myriad of reasons. Several of Hall's concepts would later be published in the 1944 Giant Golden Book Walt Disney's Surprise Package and the 1986 Disney adaptation of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, as well as in reference books by Disney animation historians John Canemaker and Didier Ghez. With typical handling and edge wear including faint age-related toning with minor corner and surface wear, overall this absolutely incredible testament to Hall's early concept work on Alice is in Very Good condition.From the Ken O’Connor Archive.
Auction Info
2025 December 12 - 15 The Art of Disney Signature® Auction #7408 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
December, 2025
12th-15th
Friday-Monday
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 16
Lot Tracking Activity: N/A
Page Views: 344
Buyer's Premium per Lot:
20% of the successful bid per lot.
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