Over the weekend at Destination D23, a new term was introduced to the world. This new term is called “Conjured Architecture.” It came out of research trips to Europe by Walt Disney Imagineers as they sought out inspiration for the upcoming Villains-Themed Land.
During their trips, the Imagineers began to identify similarities between magical, fluid, and organic appearance of both the animated villains that they were creating a new land for along with the Art Nouveau style of construction they were finding throughout Europe. The term they created, Conjured Architecture, refers to the blend of historical components and fantastical worlds that are being brought together to create this wicked new land at Magic Kingdom. This will be something that is quite exciting to see develop and grow in the coming years as DIsney villains find a new home at Walt Disney World unlike anything that has been done before.
Along with sharing about Conjured Architecture, the inspiration behind this Villains-Themed Land was shared as well. This began with source materials from Walt Disney Animation Studios artists, some of whom were the original creators of this artwork. Disney Legend Andreas Dejas is one of them and is now consulting on the project. The conversation with Disney artists helped Imagineers realize how important the look and feel of the characters’ animation would be to the physical structures and appearances found int he land. To learn more about this, a research trips was organized and then taken.
Imagineers went to Paris, France and Barcelona, Spain to learn about the unique architecture and attributes found in these iconic locations. This was a game changer for the team. Not only did it fully immerse them in inspiration of Art Nouveau architecture design. They also saw the unique form, scale, and color that define this style from the late 1800s. While in Europe, the team partnered with local professors, and also with art and architectural historians. The Imagineers received an intimate look at the architectural aesthetics that are going to be serving as the overall design inspiration for the land.
During the discussion about this trip, it was revealed just how the physical examples found in Paris and Barcelona will be doing this. In Paris, there were plenty of Art Nouveau examples where natural motifs and swirling designs appear to make nature “cursed” as if magic had frozen things into place. Over in Barcelona, the art style is instead Modernisme. This was very different and has an almost otherworldly feel. Imagineers shared how this gave the structures an almost unnerving appearance. It is easy to see how this could be utilized in a future Villains-Themed Land when the pictures were being shown on the screens in the room.
Physical structures weren’t the only things that the Imagineers observed, however. Color also was a very important part of the trip. In both locations, there was a wonderful and rich color palette. As imagineers observed the wonderful color found in stained-glass windows and painted metals, they began to realize how they could use beautiful, deep jewel tones of the animated villains to life in the physical buildings that will be found in the new Land.
