When Magoo Flew (UPA 1954)

Seaside Woman animated by Oscar Grillo. The stylization is incredible, my friend decedentiacoprofaga introduced me to it. Though I do not really care for the depiction of the islanders, artistically I think this short is important.

The Flat (Byt), 1968

Layout drawing of Ralph Phillips from Boyhood Daze (1957), by Chuck Jones. Notice the footstep spacing guide at the bottom, which Chuck left for the animator to flesh out. 

Lindy Hop, 1936

Miguel Covarrubias

 "…he became friends with the intellectual elite of the Harlem Renaissance. His drawings and caricatures were featured in Vanity Fair, Vogue and Fortune magazines. In 1927 he illustrated Negro Drawings, which presented a more dignified image of African Americans to mainstream America. In the following years, Covarrubias also depicted Afro-Mexicans, Afro-Cubans and West and North Africans.“ 

“Today I am going to kill something. Anything. I have had enough of being ignored and today I am going to play God. It is an ordinary day, a sort of grey with boredom stirring in the streets. I squash a fly against the window with my thumb. We did that at school. Shakespeare. It was in another language and now the fly is in another language. I breathe out talent on the glass to write my name. I am a genius. I could be anything at all, with half the chance. But today I am going to change the world. Something’s world. The cat avoids me. The cat knows I am a genius, and has hidden itself. I pour the goldfish down the bog. I pull the chain. I see that it is good. The budgie is panicking. Once a fortnight, I walk the two miles into town for signing on. They don’t appreciate my autograph. There is nothing left to kill. I dial the radio and tell the man he’s talking to a superstar. He cuts me off. I get our bread-knife and go out. The pavements glitter suddenly. I touch your arm.”

— Carol Ann Duffy, ‘Education for Leisure’

Sisyphus by Marcell Jankovics (1974).  If you ever needed an example as to how line weight effects mood and intent, just watch this.  Jankovics also did Hungary’s first animated feature Janos Vitez (johnny corncob) for Pannonia, the largest animation studio in Hungary.

Again, not LAIKA, but here are sculpts of Hap (the protagonist) for The Shadow King (cancelled) by artist Damon Bard (Coraline), from designs by Heidi Smith (ParaNorman) and/or Tony Fucile.