A Brief Look: Jason Edmiston’s Disney Portraits

 

Artist Jason Edmiston‘s  series of portraits for the Mondo / Disney gallery exhibit ‘Nothing’s Impossible‘ spotlights three of Disney’s classic villains — The Evil Queen from ‘Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs,’ Maleficent from ‘Sleeping Beauty,’ and Ursula from ‘The Little Mermaid.’

The Edmiston portraits were standouts at the ‘Nothing’s Impossible‘ show — pieces true to the Disney universe and to the artist. Edmiston shows their tainted charm — evil yet attractive. They have that romantic and magical glow Edmiston brings to all of his subjects. A sense of loving fandom. His excitement for his work comes through, contagious.

From my previous interview with Jason —

ETDC: There’s a romantic quality to your paintings, an absolute fondness and adoration for your subjects, an echo of what the audience feels toward the characters. How do you decide on your subjects? Is more solely based on what you want to paint or do you consider what will sell?

JE: It’s a little of both, but I begin with themes that I like, and if I feel that there is also a market for it, I’ll explore that idea more, by researching, and sketching concepts. I think that the love for the subject matter is always evident in the work.

If I feel passionate about the theme, the pieces tend to get a stronger reaction from the audience. They can also tell when I’m going through the motions if I’m indifferent to a property, so I really try to only take on subject matter that I feel positively towards.

I’ve been pretty lucky in my career lately that I have the luxury of picking and choosing projects, so I have quite a bit of freedom.