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Why.Be
16.05.2024
Went to bed and started reminiscing about the pink elephant scene in Disney’s Dumbo (1941) and how genius it is.
Did a little research when I woke up and found out that Salvador Dalí apparently contributed to this surreal scene. According to Disney historian Didier Ghez in one of his books, Dalí worked on some of the designs in Dumbo. Without official movie credits or specific mentions of which designs, people have fairly assumed his contribution was made in this particular scene, as it has his signature style written all over it.
The last time I watched this scene was probably two decades ago, but I still remember vividly how it felt. I still can’t explain it—creepy? Scary? Funny? I don’t know. It was just weird, but you couldn’t look away.
The Elephants (1948) — Salvador Dalí
Pink Elephant (lithograph) — Salvador Dalí
One of Dalí’s famous paintings, The Elephants (1948) may resemble the scene for its dreamlike composition, but I find these lithographs of his even more resembling.
Elephant De Triomphe (lithograph 1978) — Salvador Dalí