AL DEMPSTER Original MODERN ABSTRACT LANDSCAPE LITHOGRAPH Disney Artist

Hand Signed Limited Edition Lithograph. Colors are Vivid and Bold. Was born in Atlantic City, New Jersey. After relocating to Los Angeles he got a job with the Disney Studio in 1939 and when Walt saw his painting skills first hand, he was quickly transferred to the background department. Those skills benefitted the studio on classic like Fantasia, Dumbo, Saludos Amigos, Victory Through Air Power, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music and Song of the South.

He left the studio in 1945 but came back in 1952 to create more lovely backgrounds for Walt's Peter Pan. He stayed on to contribute to Lady and The Tramp, Sleeping Beauty, One Hundred and One Dalmatians, Sword in the Stone, Jungle Book and more. He left a lasting mark when he teamed up with close friend Don Griffith to create the look for all of the Winnie the Pooh features. Al's illustrations for Santa's Toy Shop, Walt Disney's Mother Goose, and Walt Disney's Uncle Remus Stories are especially fondly remembered, as are his pictures for the Golden Book editions of Three Little Pigs, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, and Alice in Wonderland. His painting for the cover of the Alice in Wonderland Little Golden Book is considered by many to be the Mona Lisa of Disney storybook illustration, Shue once said. Al loved illustrating books, and that these were done at a time when the studio atmosphere was much like a school, where invention and new ways of tackling any visual storytelling format was exciting and fun. And, boy, it sure shows in the work! In 1966, at Walt's personal request, Al donated his time and talent to the creation of the Queen of the World shrine at the St. Elizabeth Hospital in Red Bluff, California. Working from Al's detailed drawings, Italian sculptor Pasquini Enzo sculpted the central figure of Mary, Mother of God. At Walt Disney's personal request, Al translated many of the studio's films into lavishly illustrated children's books, usually with pal Bill Justice providing the pencils. He retired from the studio for various reasons but agreed to return to help with The Rescuers in 1973.