Vintage Walt Disney WDP Original Love Birds Display Model Artist Vasco Ruberti

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Vintage Walt Disney WDP Original Love Birds Display Model Artist Vasco Ruberti:
$150.00

These sweet love birds are a Walt Disney Productions piece. They’re made of molded plastic (or hard rubber? or composition?) with a painted finish. This piece was made by either Vasco Ruberti or his wife. Her name was Genevieve Kopka Ruberti. She was also an artist, and they met when they both worked at a display fabricating company in Chicago. This piece, as well as the other Walt Disney Productions animal figures and the Hostess clown we have listed, came from Vasco Ruberti’s estate.
We don’t know what these animal figures were designed or made for. They resemble the forest animals from the movie “Snow White” and the woodland creatures of the original “Bambi” movie. It’s possible that they were part of one of the displays that Stensgaard & Assoc. made for Disney. But they may have been models (or prototypes?) for designs that were produced for sale.
There is a wonderful website devoted to the Rubertis’ work. This website has a wealth of information and wonderful photos, drawings, and documentary materials from their lives and careers. If you go to the section on Walt Disney Artwork, you can see some of the Rubertis’ work for Disney. This piece (as well as the Walt Disney Productions animal figures we have listed) came from the estate of Vasco Ruberti.
The following excerpt is from the Ruberti - June 12, 1921 - March 12, 2014 Born in Harve, Montana to Italian immigrants - Assuntina Trevilini and Angelo Ruberti. His father worked on the railroad. The family moved to Chicago in 1923.
Genevieve Kopka - March 5, 1927 - July, 4, 2011 Born in Chicago to Polish immigrants - Apolonia Sobczak & Joseph Kopka. They lived above the candy store they owned on the North side of Chicago.Vasco studied at the Institute of Design and the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts in Chicago which came to be the Fine Arts Institute of Chicago. He started working at Stensgaard& Assoc. in 1939 as a Display Artist. He also did some work for Disney in those early days.
Vasco enlisted in the Army in 1943 and served during WWII from June 1943 - March 1946. He was on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. During his tour of duty, Vasco worked on a special project with several other artists (Richard Rush of Richard Rush Studio\'s & Sigmond Purwin) creating a three dimensional layout of the terrain for the infantry men. He was also commissioned to paint a portrait of a commanding officer. When Vasco returned to Stensgaard & Assoc. after the war he met his future wife, Genevieve Kopka.”Also:“Vasco used his creative talents to design a functioning toy for the firstMcDonald\'s \"Happy Meal\" 1988”
“W.D.P” with a copyright symbol is molded into the form.
approximate measurements:7 3/4\" wide x 6 1/2\" deep x 7\" high
condition:- heavy losses to the painted finish (the paint is very dry and actively flaking)- some spots/stains- a few chips or deterioration to the form- some very sloppy repairs- surface dust and soiling(We did not clean this.)International buyers, please note-
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The purchase price will be the value declared, and the item will be marked as merchandise. The buyer is responsible for any customs fees, duty or taxes. They are not included in the purchase price or shipping cost. Please check with your country\'s customs office to determine what these additional costs will be prior to offerding or buying. Customs fees are normally charged by the shipping company or collected when you pick the item up. These fees are not additional shipping charges.If you have any questions, please email us during the sale. We would be happy to try to answer them.
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