Ihave always had an appreciation for Alphonse Mucha and the Art Nouveau period as a whole. There's something about the movement and the fluidity of that style that makes a piece extremely hypnotizing, but at the same time elegant and simple. Drawing inspiration from that style, I did a series of illustrations dedicated to Disney's villains (cuz I also draw a particular enjoyment of the evil side of... well... anything. Hahaha!)
However, I didn't choose the villains randomly. No, I chose the most sadistic, cruel and fucked up of the villains:
MALEFICENT: She's dark, she's soulless, she's...so pissed off that she gon' take her rage out on...a BABY! And this isn't just an episode of in-the-heat-of-the-moment rage. No, Maleficent is so consumed by her rage she's willing to wait sixteen years to see her curse come to fruition. King Philip done fucked up big if she's that pissed. Jus'saying.
CRUELLA DE VIL: This one is kinda obvious. I mean, c'mon... PUPPIES! And not just one, or ten, or fifty... Nuh uh, Cruella wanted to slaughter nearly a hundred of them for the sake of having a purdy coat. I'm all for fashion and style, but, I'm sorry, that just requires too much effort. Not to mention unecessarily expensive and bloody. Amazon, woman. Amazon. Not only would it be cheaper, but shit, Cruella, you might be able to get it same-day delivery! Why wouldn't you go with that option?! Save the puppies!
MADAME MEDUSA: Madame Medusa is one of the more obscure and classic of the Disney Villains. If you're not familiar with The Rescuers, I suggest you go watch it. Anywhoo, Medusa isn't just one for child labor law violations; this cray-cray woman is perfectly comfortable with going through a seemingly endless supply of orphan toddlers for the purpose of hunting for a diamond. If she loses one child to the treacherous, dark caves, she just up and goes to get another orphan. That's some fucked up shit right there, no?
URSULA: Ahh, her motive is a classic revenge tale. She lost her control of a kingdom and was exiled to be a hermit sea witch. So, in a quest for vengeance she's willing to destroy countless lives for the pure enjoyment of seeing things crumble. If she can't have it, no one else can. Beautiful.
YZMA: Yzma could easily be a portrait of anyone mad for power, really. Male or female. Like many power hungry fuckers and bitches without a soul, Yzma is willing to kill anyone who stands in her way. And the added bonus is that she has at her beck and call a sexy, beefy underling to boss around. Clearly, intelligence is not one of her requisites.
THE QUEEN: Ah, the Queen. Disney's first villain. Now, she may not be power hungry since she already has it. Nay, her obsession is beauty. Now, that's not necessarily the most evil thing about her. Let's be real, we all know some pretty vain people in our lives. The Queen kicks it up a notch by not only eliminating those who may or may not be more beautiful than her (which in itself is already kinda fucked up), Her Majesty also demands that her paid assassin carve out the heart of Snow White and deliver it back to her in a little mahogany chest. Like, daaaaaaaamn!
Not to be outdone, the gentlemen douchebags of Disney also needed a little recognition in this series...
CLAUDE FROLLO: Now, Frollo is a classic villain archetype - in a position of power and abusing that power to make his prejudices and elitism (I'm speaking more of the Disney animated film rather the actual book) that much more threatening and foreboding. But Disney actually included a trait of Victor Hugo's villain that is subtle and yet prominent: his sexual obsession and lust for Esmerelda. I think that sexual obsession is what makes Frollo the dark and dangerous villain to earn him a place in my series of the truly fucked up.
JAFAR: Jafar is another classic villain archetype thirsty for power - willing to eliminate those he considers obstacles on his quest for the throne of Agrabah, including a king and young teenage daughter. It'd be interesting to see how things would play out if Yzma and Jafar were both advisors to a king and each had their own selfish ambitions for the throne. My money's on Yzma, really. Sure, Jafar is quite the powerful sorcerer, but Yzma could just send Kronk to snap that man in half whilst he slept. I mean, what's Iago gonna do outside of squawk a bit (before Krong tore his beak off with his bare hands)?
SCAR: Scar's story is a rather sad one in that being the family outcast allowed for resentment and hatred to fester and grow into a dark character who'd be willing to murder family. Looking at The Lion King and how Disney shaped Scar's character, even if Scar didn't get to be king after killing Mufasa and Simba, I think he'd actually be okay with just knowing that he got rid of his brother and nephew in a rather horrifying and gruesome way. If he were put in some lion den prison, I imagine Scar would be quite happy regardless.
HADES: The Greek tragedies have a knack for weaving some truly twisted tales and conflict. Hades, like Scar, has no love for his brothers and is willing to destroy the cosmos in order to destroy Zeus. What's a little unleashing of fury without some collateral damage?
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