Artist behind the art: He devises dark endings for Disney icons

Does this image of Ariel look familiar? You likely came across it scrolling through Tumblr and Buzzfeed in the mid-2010s.

Maybe you remember the one of Winnie The Pooh crouching miserably in a deforested wood, or like me, you chuckled darkly at the one that shows Bambi's head mounted on the walls of a palatial living room. 

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These are just a few images in a series dubbed Unhappily Ever After, which transplants Disney characters into a world scarred by climate change, poverty, and other environmental and social issues.

After a two-year hiatus, their creator, US-based animation storyboard artist Jeff Hong — himself an alumnus of Disney — is back with five new instalments created specially for Gardens by the Bay. 

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These new pieces, along with 10 others in the series, are on display in Asia for the first time as part of Gardens by the Bay's Race To Sustainability! programme for students. 

When we met Jeff last week at the programme's opening, he called the event and its venue the "perfect match" for his artwork, as it gave him the opportunity to address recent issues, such as the Maui wildfires, to a new generation. (Most of the students participating in the event were either too young, or hadn't been born, when Unhappily Ever After first started.) 

"I like the reaction it gets," he said, when we mentioned overhearing students discussing the homework assignments inspired by his work.

"Even if they see it as funny, it still elicits a reaction from them because they know all these Disney characters. Seeing them in these more realistic environments is maybe kind of shocking to them, almost." 

You recently came back to Instagram after a couple of years. What were you up to during that time and what brings you back now? 

I work full-time as an animation storyboard artist. So in my full-time job I work 40 to 50 hours a week in TV shows. The last project that I was on ended in July. It's going to be on Apple, It's called The Wonder Pets, and it's a spin-off of an original series that was on Nick Jr 10 years ago.

I worked on the original series and now they've brought me back as a storyboard supervisor. Previously, I continually worked on different animated TV shows. When I'm not working, that's when I have time to do more of my creative projects, like Unhappily Ever After. 

What inspired you to create the Unhappily Ever After series, in particular, these five new pieces for Gardens by the Bay? 

My first job was with Disney animation. I worked on Hercules, Mulan, Tarzan, and The Emperor's New Groove when I was very young. I started at 17. That was my dream job.

I wanted to work for Disney and I got it right away. All of these Disney movies were like a love and a passion  so I wanted to be a part of that. I still love the whole art form of 2D art. 

I did four years at Disney and then after Disney I went to art school at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), where I majored in illustration. At Disney, I learnt how to be a better artist. And then at RISD, I learnt more about how to put intellectual and conceptual ideas into art. 

I reconciled these two passions in art and made it my own by combining my love of fine art and Disney into my own series. I love Disney, but I also love fine art and conceptual art where art can have meaning. Art can have a message behind it and it doesn't need to be a 'nice' painting. It could have a message that resonates with the audience.

What was the whole thought process and inspiration behind the new pieces?

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With the theme of sustainability, I focused more on what's happening in the environment, like global warming and rising water levels. I now live part-time in Hawaii, so I really see the effects of sea rise, weather, and fires-especially with Maui, where we had the Lāhainā fires last year.

I wanted to bring in pieces that highlight what affects Hawaii. So I did a new piece featuring Moana with the Lāhainā fires behind her, and another with Lilo on the shore as rising waters destroy the homes behind her.

How do you choose which Disney characters to feature in your work? Could you talk about how you connect their original narratives to the environmental issues that you highlight? 

I feel lucky because Disney has such a wide cast of characters-animals, humans, and different ethnicities-so I could choose a topic and find a perfect character or animal to fit it. One of my first pieces was Mulan, which made me think of pollution in China back in 2014, and that really got the ideas flowing.

After that, I thought of Ariel emerging from an oil spill onto the beach. Very quickly, I was connecting Disney characters with specific human issues or things that affect the world. That made it pretty easy to get those first few images going. Almost within a week, I had 10 to 15 pieces. 

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How long does it take to even make one of these? What's the creative process like? 

For me, it's very conceptual. I think of a topic I care about, and then I try to connect it with a character. One piece, which I call Losing Nemo, shows Nemo with the bleaching of coral reefs.

You hear about global warming affecting the waters and endangering coral reefs, so that was something I wanted to highlight. Almost immediately, I thought Nemo was the perfect character to use.

Disney is known for being very protective of its work, though. Have you encountered any issues with copyright infringement or complaints? 

No, I've done this series for the last 10 years, and in every interview, I mention that I worked for Disney. So I'm sure they're aware of my work. In the States, there's something called fair use copyright, so as long as I'm not using their characters for commercial purposes, it's fine.

What I'm doing is very educational, promoting a message, and is fine-arts-based. I believe that's where I'm protected — I can use the characters and create almost a new art form using them while staying safe from copyright issues. 

How has the public response to your work influenced how the series has evolved? 

When I first started, it went viral online, so I could read people's comments. These are very divisive issues-I remember when the Daily Mail in the UK posted it, there were a lot of mean comments about my work, saying it was depressing.

But I just ignore it; my art is about spreading a message. There are some people I can't convince. Even in the US, there are people who think climate change is a hoax, who believe we should keep using gas and coal and do not think it affects the environment. I can't change those people, but I hope maybe kids who see my work will see that those actions do have an effect. 

And that it does affect their generation, in particular. 

Yeah, because they're the ones living on our planet longer than we're going to be. They have the next decades or century to really be here. 

Can you share a little bit more about what role art plays in inspiring action on environmental issues? 

I feel like art is really important for sharing issues because it's visual-something people can understand.

Especially using Disney characters, it's easy for kids to see how their actions can affect the world. I hope that, for example, when they see Flounder surrounded by plastic, they think, 'Maybe I shouldn't toss my water bottle on the ground because it could end up in the ocean. It should go in a recycling bin where it can be properly handled.'

I don't expect to change everyone's mind, but if a few people see my art and think about how they can change the way they live, even one small step at a time helps make things a little better.

Works from Unhappily Ever After will be on display at Gardens by the Bay until Dec 1, 2024. Find out more here

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This article was first published in Wonderwall.sg.