The story behind 100 Mickeys...
By Eric Robison

When I received the proposal to paint 100 Mickeys, I was excited and anxious to begin. I packed up my paints and brushes and flew to a little island in the Caribbean to commence this ambitious undertaking.

The inspiration of Nature's colors there and the occasional plunge into the river was enough to initiate a great start. I returned two weeks later with the first 21 Mice in my suitcase. That was easy. The next 79 were a bit more challenging and took 16 months to finish. The challenge was trying to make each one different in pose, style, or medium. As well as paying homage to the history of Mickey.

It is a collection of paintings that I'll never forget achieving and a dream project for any artist to take on. I am honored that I was asked to perform such a feat. I want to thank the Disney Company for allowing me to express myself in so many ways and I am honored to represent Walt's wonderful creation - Mickey Mouse...An American Icon.

MM 001- Silhouette

"After a visit to the Rainforest… I was inspired by the various shades of green in the nature there."

MM 002 - Shake It

"This is one of my favorite sketches… just graphite… a rare view."

MM 003 - Skippin’ Out - Black & White

"A sketch study for a painting… I liked it as it was… so I didn’t paint a final."

MM 004 - Skippin’ Out - Color

"I was playing with wax, chalk, paint and gesso altogether. Color rough of MM 003."

MM 005 - Off the Set

"I used my son Tanner’s crayons for this…he had left them lying about…
I was glad that he did."

MM 006 - Sepia Mickey

"I wanted that old fashioned look here. Sepia tone on parchment."

MM 007 - Cardboard Mickey

"I painted this on a cardboard box, years before the 100 Mickeys assignment just for fun. I was happy to finally put it to use."

MM 008 - Shy Mickey

"One of Mickey’s many attributes…shyness."

MM 009 - Toe Touch Mickey

"The movement of the brush strokes and the toe touch pose has made this one a
favorite among Disney fans already."

MM 010 - Brave Little
Tailor 1

"From the film “Brave Little Tailor”…the expressions in this Disney film I think is
Disney at its best."

MM 011 - Tee It Up - Color

"Fore!!!! Mickey on vacation in Walt Disney World."

MM 012 - Sorcerer in the Dark

"Mickey is hiding in the blue shadows while yensid discovers his mischievous
Adventure. The magic hat glows in the dark."

MM 013 - Smooches

"I painted this on St. Valentine's ay…obviously amour even applies to mice."

MM 014 - Jelly Bean Mickey

"I call this one jelly bean because his shoes were inspired by jelly beans that I was
eating while painting it."

MM 015 - Double Take

"My idea here was to paint a side view and a front view in the same frame."

MM 016 - Triste (Sad)

"Triste means sad in French… I lowered his ears to help convey this."

MM 017 - Gimme a Hug

"Inspired by a candy bag at Disneyland."

MM 018 - Brave Little Tailor Going Home

"One of three storyboard sequences…can you find the other two."

MM 019 - Here It Is - Sketch

"Hi Ya Folks!!!!!!"

MM 020 - Rear View Mirror Mickey

"Painted with a rag tied around a stick."

MM 021 - Over There

"The head is inspired by the toilet paper roll cover in the Disneyland Hotel."

MM 022 - Blue Mickey

"Originally done for a watch face plate. Disney made a watch from my painting of
Pongo {101 Dalamtians} instead."

MM 023 - Big Game Mickey

"This was actually my palette that I painted over."

MM 024 - Maraschino Mouse

"Maraschino because his nose looks like a cherry."

MM 025 - Yellow Nose Mickey

"…Painted in the Caribbean… Mickey's ears are the color of the sea and the nose represents the sun… it
was a beautiful day…"