(Walt Disney Studios, 1959) Brilliant original concept storyboard painting by Eyvind Earle for Sleeping Beauty, portraying the brave Prince Phillip, armed with the 'Sword of Truth' and atop his trusty steed Samson, charging valiantly in the direction of Sleeping Beauty's distant castle and prepared to do battle with the evil witch Maleficent. The scene is achieved with stunning effect and skill, with Phillip’s bright whipping cape and tunic adding heroistic light to the grim and baleful surroundings, a vista marked with barren trees, jagged rock, empty sky, and the clawing reach of encroaching forest limbs. Expertly accomplished in gouache on 15 x 6 artist's board, with Earle signing in crisp white paint in the lower right corner. In fine condition, with tack holes to each corner. Disney artist Eyvind Earle was Sleeping Beauty's production designer, and Disney gave him a significant amount of freedom in designing the settings and selecting colors for the film. Earle also painted the majority of the backgrounds himself, and his stylistic influence is readily apparent in the final product.
