Joe Ranft Family Archive Leads Heritage’s Massive Art of Disney Auction

More than 100 pieces from the family archive of Disney Legend Joe Ranft will make their public debut as part of Heritage Auctions’ upcoming Art of Disney Signature Auction. The three-day sale, scheduled for August 21 through August 23, will feature more than 1,300 lots spanning nearly a century of Disney animation, theme park and comic art.

At the center of the auction is the Joe Ranft Family Archive, a collection of original storyboards, concept art, production artwork and personal memorabilia documenting the career of one of Disney and Pixar’s most influential storytellers.

Ranft worked at Walt Disney Studios before serving as storyboard supervisor on Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach. He later became one of the four members of Pixar’s Brain Trust and helped shape Pixar films from Toy Story through Cars.

Among the archive highlights are never-before-seen storyboard drawings attributed to Ranft from The Nightmare Before Christmas, including sequences from the “Town Meeting Song.”

The auction will also include hand-colored Toy Story storyboard sequences showing Woody sending the Army Men to investigate Andy’s birthday party.

Collectors will find additional storyboard groups from Monsters, Inc., original concept artwork from The Brave Little Toaster and material from James and the Giant Peach, A Bug’s Life, Toy Story 2 and Cars.

The archive extends beyond production artwork. Heritage will offer Ranft’s Disney Legend Award, Annie Award and Pixar service awards, along with production maquettes and personal memorabilia.

One particularly personal piece is a bronze Woody memorial sculpture created by Ranft’s brother, Jerome Ranft. The sculpture is inscribed, “Remembering All Your Years of Passion & Commitment – Joe Ranft.”

Selections from Ranft’s personal collection of books and magic tricks will also be included.

Rare Disney Parks Posters Head to Auction

The sale also includes more than 20 original attraction posters from Disneyland, Walt Disney World and Disneyland Paris.

Among the attractions represented are The Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise, Peter Pan’s Flight, Rocket to the Moon, Astro Jets, Tom Sawyer Island and Submarine Voyage. An especially scarce proof for Casey’s Hot Dogs created for Disneyland Paris will also be offered.

Heritage noted that the attraction posters were originally produced as hand-pulled serigraphs and were intended to promote attractions inside the parks rather than be sold as souvenirs. Because many were discarded as attractions changed, surviving examples have become highly sought-after pieces of Disney Parks history.

Carl Barks Artwork and Disney Masters Also Featured

The auction will include 20 original works by Disney Legend Carl Barks, including 18 drawings and two preliminary paintings. One of the highlighted pieces is a preliminary painting created for the 1987 First National Bank of Cibola lithograph, inspired by Barks’ 1954 Uncle Scrooge story “The Seven Cities of Cibola.”

More than 40 additional original works represent artists who helped define Disney’s visual style, including Mary Blair, Eyvind Earle, Gustaf Tenggren, Albert Hurter, Ferdinand Horvath, Fred Moore and Andreas Deja. Additional artwork comes from Ralph Hulett, Floyd Gottfredson, Nick George and Disney Imagineer Eddie Sotto.

The broader auction will also feature production art from films including Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Fantasia, Pinocchio, Bambi, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan and Sleeping Beauty. Later Disney favorites represented include Who Framed Roger Rabbit, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and The Lion King.

Other collectibles in the more than 1,300-lot auction include original Mickey Mouse and Winnie the Pooh artwork, pieces signed by Walt Disney, studio maquettes, Disney vinyl records and historic Disney furniture.

Heritage’s Art of Disney Signature Auction will take place August 21 through August 23.