by Tiera Tanner, WDW Radio Team
“Boundless,” New Painting for the 2022 Festival of the Arts, Rosemary Begley
When visiting the Disney Parks, breathtaking views and gorgeous vistas exist around every turn. Guests treasure sightings of Cinderella Castle, the Tree of Life, and the Millennium Falcon, but so many more magical landscapes and architecture await those guests visiting for their first time, or their 50th.
Inspired by the sights surrounding guests at Walt Disney World, Rosemary Begley paints these scenes as a Disney artist of 10 years.
“Transformative,” New Painting for the 2022 Festival of the Arts, Rosemary Begley
“I paint mostly architectural scenes of the theme parks,” Begley explained. “Cinderella Castle, Space Mountain, Beauty and the Beast Castle, Haunted Mansion, the Dumbo ride – all are favorite scenes we love at WDW, and want to bring home as memories of wondrous times spent at the happiest place on earth.”
Begley’s passion for painting architecture and landscapes comes from her “love of the seashore from time spent on the East Coast,” which “translates into a passion for painting scenes of beaches, boats and birds, but having grown up in the heart of NYC, I also enjoy painting buildings and architectural structures,” stated Begley.
“Trusting,” New Painting for the 2022 Festival of the Arts, Rosemary Begley
The Disney connection into Begley’s work began after joining the Disney Vacation Club.
“I took time during our vacations to paint some scenes of favorite Disney resorts,” Begley said. “I enjoyed painting them so much, I decided to submit my work to Disney. Shortly and miraculously after that, I was asked to join Disney as a Consignment Artist, and have passionately painted since.”
Begley described her process of deciding which scenes to portray as “intuitive,” but the “inspiration begins with a deep love of Disney and musicals that began when I was nine years old watching ‘Mary Poppins’ at Radio City Music Hall during its debut.” Begley continued:
“As a little child living in a split family with many challenging circumstances, the movie opened my eyes and heart to important life lessons that I have carried with me ever since, and that have guided me through hard times, always providing hope. I find there are no coincidences that those life lessons show up all the time in my paintings, which is why I like to blog about the art on my website BegleyArt.com. My style of painting is realistic, and recently I developed a ‘painterly border’ unique to my originals, which is an abstract addition that I feel extends the vision of the piece and gives it a three-dimensional quality. For the second Festival in a row, Disney is featuring special Framed Painterly Print reproductions of my paintings that include the borders, along with selling the original paintings framed with the original ‘painterly border’ and deluxe prints.”
Begley’s realistic paintings capture the beauty of Disney attractions and architecture through a soft and dreamy palette of pastel tones, such as in “Upward” – a new work for the Festival. “Upward” features three flying Dumbos, surrounded by a blue sky and whimsical bubbles. Viewers feel as if they’re watching Dumbo soar as the painted perspective aptly looks upward.
“Upward,” New Painting for the 2022 Festival of the Arts, Rosemary Begley
“As I reflect on my four original paintings to debut at the Festival of the Arts 2022, I would add that looking Upward for inspiration and guidance and Trusting that there is something and someone greater than yourself to lead the way is Transformative in life, and opens doors of Boundless opportunities and achievements,” Begley said.
Begley encourages guests of all ages to pursue their dreams, especially artistic ones.
“I share with guests of all ages that it is never too late to try their hand at art,” Begley explained.
“I believe much of my progress is a result of following my passions more than necessarily being “talented”. We all have an artist in us, are created to create, to use our gifts, develop our talents, and help each other to be better. I see many young, aspiring artists, some schooled and some self-taught, who are well on their way, with confidence and social/societal support I did not even begin to experience until I took a leap of faith with Disney, as Disney did with me. So when considering a career as an artist, my biggest advice of all is to pray about it, and ask for direction from above.”
Experience Begley’s new work in person at the Festival of the Arts, January 14 – February 21, 2022 or explore her paintings online at begleyart.com.
Tiera Tanner lives her life spreading pixie dust. Whether creating art in her studio, or raising her two young sons, Tiera is inspired by the magic of Disney, and is always encouraging her husband to plan their next trip to the parks.
