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The Art of Disney Costuming: Heroes, Villains, and Spaces Between
Celebrate the imagination, passion, and attention to detail invested in each Disney costume within this gorgeous coffee table book! The elegant and adventurous array of dresses, uniforms, and other attire is a feast for the eyes and a fascinating examination of pure craft and of the brilliant, creative minds behind it. The collection begins with a summation of the costumes created for Disney animation, early live action, and television, along with show wardrobes sported at the Disney Parks by Audio-Animatronics figures and Cast Members. The next section details a timeless case study: Cinderella's ball gown. A diverse group of designers has been called upon over the years to address and improvise the creative and practical needs each time the fairy tale Cinderella has been reimagined. Each project has brought with it inherent cultural challenges when bringing a familiar and beloved tale to life again and again, and all have yielded stunning and distinct results. At last, the full galleries (organized by the character archetypes of heroes and villains, and those complex, always interesting, "spaces between") showcase costumes across more than thirty Disney films. At each turn, this volume offers a one-of-a-kind backstage view of remarkable works of art, and it inspires a true appreciation for the highly skilled and talented costumers who created them.
174 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2019
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479 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
January 23, 2020
The beginning where it focused more on history and imagineering was great, but when it got to the actual costumes it was a very odd choice of assortment. I felt this was more an advertisement for Disney Plus rather than a comprehensive look at Disney costumes. I flipped through to admire all the photos, but didn't end up reading it all the way through.
December 18, 2021
The close ups of these pieces were stunning. It made the amount of time spent on them very apparent.
I did wish the information about the designers were a bit more than a summary resume of their works and the book itself is coffee table sized so it’s a bit unwieldy to actually read through, but it facilitates beautiful images and a solid overview of costuming.
I did wish the information about the designers were a bit more than a summary resume of their works and the book itself is coffee table sized so it’s a bit unwieldy to actually read through, but it facilitates beautiful images and a solid overview of costuming.
January 28, 2021
Beautiful close-up images of all the live action Disney costumes, and it provides some great insights into how the designers used the costumes to help create the characters. There's so much detail it's impossible to see on the screen so this book was great for learning about the level of detail, thought and backstory that go into even something as small as which buttons to use on a character's coat.
February 12, 2022
For any costuming fan, Disney fan, and Disney costuming fan, this book is for you! It is an in-depth look into some of the costumes that Disney films have produced, starting with their animation days.
In the first animated films Disney produced, the animators would often draw the characters from life, meaning that actors/models would be dressed in the costumes so there had to be a real, tangible costume for the person to wear. They were often exaggerated with black lines outlining different shapes on the fabric, in order for the artists to see how the fabric moved when the actors would act out the scene.
The book moves to a beautiful study of Cinderella's dress, spanning from the original animation, to the ballgown in Disney's version of Roger's and Hammerstein's Cinderella, the ballgown in Into the Woods, the ballgown in the 2015 live action remake, and Cinderella's iconic dress in the tv series Once Upon a Time. I think this was the first costume study because the dress itself is so iconic and so easily recognizable that it was deemed a introduction costume.
From there, we get three full sections devoted to Dwelling in Darkness (Villains), Spaces Between (those who aren't quite heroes but not really villains), and Living in the Light (Heroes).
Each costume is printed beautifully and featured on a full page, with some having another two page spread accompanying it.
The designer gets a little section at the end of each costume stating where they studied, what other movies they've worked on (Disney or not), and their achievements/awards. If the designer had been previously mentioned, then of course they don't repeat this. My only complaint in this book lies in the fact that there are no photos of the designers. I would have liked to have seen a face that I could put with the names of the designer.
Overall this book was fantastic. I had it on my Amazon wishlist and my bestie got it for me Christmas. I was surprised at the size of the book. It was way bigger that I was expecting, but it helped to really be able to see the detail on each costume. 10/10 recommend.
In the first animated films Disney produced, the animators would often draw the characters from life, meaning that actors/models would be dressed in the costumes so there had to be a real, tangible costume for the person to wear. They were often exaggerated with black lines outlining different shapes on the fabric, in order for the artists to see how the fabric moved when the actors would act out the scene.
The book moves to a beautiful study of Cinderella's dress, spanning from the original animation, to the ballgown in Disney's version of Roger's and Hammerstein's Cinderella, the ballgown in Into the Woods, the ballgown in the 2015 live action remake, and Cinderella's iconic dress in the tv series Once Upon a Time. I think this was the first costume study because the dress itself is so iconic and so easily recognizable that it was deemed a introduction costume.
From there, we get three full sections devoted to Dwelling in Darkness (Villains), Spaces Between (those who aren't quite heroes but not really villains), and Living in the Light (Heroes).
Each costume is printed beautifully and featured on a full page, with some having another two page spread accompanying it.
The designer gets a little section at the end of each costume stating where they studied, what other movies they've worked on (Disney or not), and their achievements/awards. If the designer had been previously mentioned, then of course they don't repeat this. My only complaint in this book lies in the fact that there are no photos of the designers. I would have liked to have seen a face that I could put with the names of the designer.
Overall this book was fantastic. I had it on my Amazon wishlist and my bestie got it for me Christmas. I was surprised at the size of the book. It was way bigger that I was expecting, but it helped to really be able to see the detail on each costume. 10/10 recommend.
March 7, 2021
What a beautiful book! Getting so up close to these pieces is breathtaking—the detail that goes into costume design incredible.
I do wish there had been more older costumes featured, but as shown on shows like Disney+‘s Prop Culture a lot of these things weren’t kept track of and have since disappeared. I appreciated all the different outfits that were included.
I do wish there had been more older costumes featured, but as shown on shows like Disney+‘s Prop Culture a lot of these things weren’t kept track of and have since disappeared. I appreciated all the different outfits that were included.
October 29, 2019
This is a must read for fans of all things Disney, if not for the colorful, up-close photographs of some of your favorite costumes then for the backstories on the costume designers and details behind how some of these costumes came to be!
March 5, 2025
Really cool to see detailed pictures of the costumes you can’t see as well on screen!
September 15, 2020
Great visuals. But I would have liked more focus on older films. Oh well. That's probably another book.
February 19, 2021
¡Finalizado!
Si eres fan de Disney y además te apasiona el vestuario de cine, tienes que tener este libro.
Este, se encuentra estructurado:
- Primero: introducción a los inicios del vestuario en Disney.
- Segunda Parte: el estudio del desarrollo del vestuario de la Cenicienta.
- Tercera Parte: el vestuario de los malvados de Disney.
- Cuarta Parte: Aquellos personajes que comienzan siendo los malos de la película pero que su desarrollo los llevan a un buen destino.
- Quinta parte: los buenos de la cinta.
He disfrutado muchísimo el vestuario de: Cate Blanchett en Cenicienta, Angelina Jolie en Maléfica, Alicia en el País de las Maravillas o la Cruella de Vil de los años 90.
He descubierto los diseños de Paco Delgado ¡Qué son pura fantasía!
Lo peor (pequeña advertencia): existe un error de edición, o por lo menos parece tal, en las primeras páginas está directamente la introducción con los inicios de Disney y no es hasta la página 17 que aparece el glosario del libro, para después lanzarse de lleno al resto de partes.
Si eres fan de Disney y además te apasiona el vestuario de cine, tienes que tener este libro.
Este, se encuentra estructurado:
- Primero: introducción a los inicios del vestuario en Disney.
- Segunda Parte: el estudio del desarrollo del vestuario de la Cenicienta.
- Tercera Parte: el vestuario de los malvados de Disney.
- Cuarta Parte: Aquellos personajes que comienzan siendo los malos de la película pero que su desarrollo los llevan a un buen destino.
- Quinta parte: los buenos de la cinta.
He disfrutado muchísimo el vestuario de: Cate Blanchett en Cenicienta, Angelina Jolie en Maléfica, Alicia en el País de las Maravillas o la Cruella de Vil de los años 90.
He descubierto los diseños de Paco Delgado ¡Qué son pura fantasía!
Lo peor (pequeña advertencia): existe un error de edición, o por lo menos parece tal, en las primeras páginas está directamente la introducción con los inicios de Disney y no es hasta la página 17 que aparece el glosario del libro, para después lanzarse de lleno al resto de partes.
April 9, 2022
A lovely book covering the history of costuming in the world of Disney from animation to theme park to live action, and brief overviews of signature film costumes over the years. Having seen many of the outfits featured through the Disney Heroes & Villains exhibit, it was fascinating to get a glimpse into the process of creating each look. While there were times I wished there was more in-depth discussion on certain costumes, I was still satisfied with the information presented. I loved that they gave attention to well-known looks (i.e. the various Cinderella gowns) as well as lesser known ones (i.e. Horvath from The Sorcerer's Apprentice). It was also neat reading the career overviews of the various costume designers and getting to see what other films they've worked on outside of Disney. Overall, this is a fantastic book for any Disney lover, film enthusiast, or costume designer (whether professional or as a hobbyist like a cosplayer) to check out.
April 20, 2023
I'm such a fan of costuming and historical and fantasy costuming especially, Disney really shines in producing such iconic and beautiful costumes. This book is so important in highlighting how amazing all of these designers are. The movies and characters wouldn't be what they are without them.
The Into the Woods (2014) costumes being inspired by the woods themselves??? ICONIC. All of Cinderella (2015)?? LEGENDARY. (Sandy Powell I can't wait to see what you do for Snow White) Also the talent it takes to put together the various patterns and trims on mother ginger!!!!!!! The book also has lots of fun facts like one of my favourites being the Pirates of the Caribbean were crafted to be authentic to the time period and have no modern closures!
Royalty, villains, pirates and even a bit about cast members, this book covers a bit of everything with amazing HD photos of the costumes themselves (the physical book is VERY large and heavy, the gorgeous details really shine)
The Into the Woods (2014) costumes being inspired by the woods themselves??? ICONIC. All of Cinderella (2015)?? LEGENDARY. (Sandy Powell I can't wait to see what you do for Snow White) Also the talent it takes to put together the various patterns and trims on mother ginger!!!!!!! The book also has lots of fun facts like one of my favourites being the Pirates of the Caribbean were crafted to be authentic to the time period and have no modern closures!
Royalty, villains, pirates and even a bit about cast members, this book covers a bit of everything with amazing HD photos of the costumes themselves (the physical book is VERY large and heavy, the gorgeous details really shine)
February 23, 2020
This coffee table book is filled with gorgeous full color photographs of costumes from Walt Disney. A prologue illustrates how essential costuming is in all areas of Disney including animated films, live-action films, television, “show wardrobe” for attractions, and the cast of Disney parks. Costuming is an essential part of establishing each character. The book then gives an in-depth look at the evolution of the Cinderella costumes beginning with the design of the characters in the 1950 film and the physical costumes worn for live-action reference. Next are in-depth looks at various characters in chapters for villains, those in between, and heroes. Included are mini biographies are a number of award-winning costume designers throughout the years. This is a must for any fan of Disney and those interested in fashion and costuming.
May 6, 2023
Big, pretty pictures but lacks all the exciting information on how the costumes came to be.
The copy accompanying the pictures is 90% quote-from-someone-saying-nothing-of-value and a Wikipedia biography, "this person made it, they won this many Oscars for these other movies, and they worked at Disney for this many years." Yup. That's super boring. There were only a few bits that delivered what I was expecting. Like, how Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella's dresses were a mix of medieval and 1940s/50s fashion of having dropped shoulders or sleeveless.
What's missing is more inspiration, technical details on engineering the garments for the use and movement the actors make in them, the fabric choices, and the depth of references used to design the costumes. I think Disney made this book thinking no one would actually read it. At least, they wrote it that way.
The copy accompanying the pictures is 90% quote-from-someone-saying-nothing-of-value and a Wikipedia biography, "this person made it, they won this many Oscars for these other movies, and they worked at Disney for this many years." Yup. That's super boring. There were only a few bits that delivered what I was expecting. Like, how Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella's dresses were a mix of medieval and 1940s/50s fashion of having dropped shoulders or sleeveless.
What's missing is more inspiration, technical details on engineering the garments for the use and movement the actors make in them, the fabric choices, and the depth of references used to design the costumes. I think Disney made this book thinking no one would actually read it. At least, they wrote it that way.
January 4, 2021
There's some really good pictures and some interesting quotes from designers about how and why they designed the costumes that they did, but the whole thing is kind of dragged down by some seriously weird choices. There are two different characters from The Sorcerer's Apprentice, of all things. A few of the more out there choices were refreshing, like Dorothy from Return to Oz, but something like Ben from National Treasure is just bizarre. And giving only two or three paragraphs per character doesn't allow for a lot of information in most cases. Maybe spend more time talking about the character costumes that people are actually interested in instead of trying to shoehorn in some of the weirder examples.
January 12, 2020
I loved this book so much! It was captivating and I loved hearing all the behind-the-scenes stories and the costume considerations that shaped many of the characters we love! I learned so much about costuming and character and how they each impact the other. My only wish for this book would be more pictures! There were moments that other costumes were referenced as a comparison, but that reference costume would not be pictured which was a bummer.
September 1, 2020
This was an interesting look into how some of the iconic costumes of the Disney franchise were created. The costume is an outward expression of the character, which in many cases, help the actor create their character.
Also, it just fun to look at this big coffee table book of photos that transport you into the movies.
Also, it just fun to look at this big coffee table book of photos that transport you into the movies.
May 24, 2022
What really sold me on this book were the giant pictures of the costumes with great detail. The text is really interesting - for some of these characters, I think the costume designer thought more about them than the writers. If you're interested in costume design, I would definitely recommend this book.
November 23, 2019
This is an amazing coffee table book, filled with full color photos of well known Disney movie and television costumes.
Several of the photos show the intricate details behind some iconic characters.
Also included: brief biographies of the designers.
Several of the photos show the intricate details behind some iconic characters.
Also included: brief biographies of the designers.
March 17, 2023
4.5🌟 for me. While a lot of the live action remakes, we’re not for me, I LOVED the costuming. It was so cool to see the costumes up close and in detail. I don’t remember a thing about the Cinderella remake story, but I remember how much I loved the costume design. So cool to see those up close!
December 11, 2023
It's such a lovely book, I just love costume books and I wish there would be more books like that which show the amazing work of costume designers <3
Could have more pages and costumes for this price and more information about the costumes themselves.
Could have more pages and costumes for this price and more information about the costumes themselves.
November 6, 2019
Beautiful! I loved the huge photographs of the costuming and designs. This is a must for anyone looking to recreate Disney costumes for cosplay or whatever.
December 11, 2019
Gorgeous book, I just wish there could have been even more costumes included.
April 30, 2020
Brilliant for anyone interested in Disney films and history and film or theatrical costumes. The book is gorgeous. Intended as a companion to the D23 exhibition, it works brilliantly on its own.
September 30, 2020
Loved this. The close up and details are amazing, favorite was 2019 Jasmine up close
April 24, 2022
A feast for the eyes with some gorgeous photos of live-action Disney costumes! This book also tells some Disney costuming history and includes information on various costume designers as well.
October 19, 2022
Miste een paar costumes van grote films
December 30, 2022
Well written book and a visual library
April 29, 2024
An odd choice of costumes and I wish it focused more on the clothes and design choices than a general history of the designer
July 2, 2025
Pg 43, 52, 68, 74, 78, 90, 98, 128, 154, 165.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews