The Coverings 2010 press team was treated to a behind-the-scenes tour of the Disney property. In the first report of this tour I focused on Walt Disney as Master Planner. This follow up is about Disney as a Master of Details. (Again, my gratitude to Ester Perman and Nicole Janok of Weeder+Perman and Marc Kushner and Ryan Quinlan at Architizer for allowing me to participate.)

The group learned from our guide that above all else, Walt Disney was a teller of stories. We know that bold concepts and broad stokes can outline a story, but it is the details of a story that bring it to life. And it is not the mere presence of details that matter, but the skillful application of them that makes the difference. Too few specifics can hinder engagement while too many can produce tedium. The Mastery of Details is in striking this balance.
 
We learned that Walt applied this simple rule; lavish fine details where guests will spend the most time and be more sparing elsewhere. As we toured the grounds we spent as much time behind the scenes. It’s true – Disney World visitors are immersed in rich detail while “backstage” is a place of unadorned efficiency. 

Photo by DanAndSherree.com

Our veteran guide gave a great example. Apparently some automated flowers were added to a planting bed near a public restroom. Children were the first to notice the active little flowers and their delight caught their parents’ attention. Before long families would gather around the animated plantings for group pictures. The special detail took on a life of it’s own. Whether the placement of the automated wonders came from Mr. Disney himself or whether it was evidence of the culture he established, I believe it speaks of the importance of details at an interactive level.

Liberty Theatre

Another example of details comes in the scaling of the buildings. I had learned years ago that ground level doors, windows and details are typically standard sizes, while upper floor elements are proportionally smaller and painted slightly lighter shades to promote the illusion they are farther away from the viewer. Disney didn’t invent these techniques – classical architects designed with such perspective-forcing devices. When necessary the visual rules can be manipulated in other ways as they are at the Liberty Theatre in EPCOT. As our guide pointed out, the recognizable elements of Williamsburg architecture were manipulated to bring the five-story structure down to scale as a two and a half-story. 

A final example, more subtle and more fun (to this writer anyway) are the Hidden Mickeys. These are details through out the parks, formed simply by three circles – the universally recognized icon of Mickey Mouse ears. Hidden Mickeys can be large enough to drive through as in the entry gates to Arata Isozaki‘s Team Disney building or as small and subtle as the slightindention of Mickey in the faux-stone fireplace in the Wilderness Lodge. These are the details that keep you hunting – each one a surprise treat for the viewer. 

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