Not so happily ever after! Disney characters battle poverty, natural disaster and pollution as artist imagines them in the 'real world'
Disney's motto is 'where dreams come true' but a new art series puts a nightmarish spin on things.
New York-based animation artist Jeff Hong, 35, has imagined some of the company's most popular characters battling the grim conditions of the real world.
For instance, on his Tumblr, Unhappily Ever After, one image sees Ariel washed up on a beach covered in oil spill - a far cry from the pollution-free ocean she inhabits in The Little Mermaid.
Nightmarish: New York-based animation artist Jeff Hong, 35, has imagined Disney characters battling the grim conditions of the real world - here Ariel from The Little Mermaid appears washed up on a beach covered in oil
Another shot shows Winnie the Pooh plucked from The Hundred Acre Wood and dumped in an area of deforestation, causing him to sit in tears.
And Mulan is forced to wear a face mask as she walks around the smoggy streets of contemporary China.
Animal cruelty is another theme of Mr Hong's series.
Where's my knight in shining armor? Cinderella lurks in a dirty alley at night with her ball gown in tatters
Air pollution: Mulan wears a face mask as she walks around the smoggy streets of contemporary China
Take me home: Winnie the Pooh is plucked from The Hundred Acre Wood and dumped in an area of deforestation, causing him to sit in tears
One artwork shows Dumbo cowering in the background as a circus master holds a whip in a blood-stained hand in the foreground.
And the puppies from 101 Dalmatians are seen locked in small dog pound cages.
Remy from Ratatouille also gets a rough deal, losing free rein of the kitchen for the confines of an animal testing laboratory, while Bambi gets beheaded and turned into a wall trophy.
Image-conscious: Belle from Beauty and the Beast is seen with her face marked up in a plastic surgeon's room in a bid to better her appearance
Oh deer! Bambi gets beheaded and turned into a wall trophy
Behind bars: The puppies from 101 Dalmatians are seen locked in small dog pound cages
Down and out: Remy from Ratatouille loses free rein of the kitchen for the confines of an animal testing lab
Chicken Little manages to escape peril but quivers with terror as he suddenly realizes he's stood outside of Kentucky Fried Chicken.
When it comes to the Disney Princesses their knights in shining armor are nowhere to be seen.
Cinderella lurks in a dirty alley at night with her ball gown in tatters and Belle from Beauty and the Beast is seen with her face marked up in a plastic surgeon's room in a bid to better her appearance.
Help me! Simba from the Lion King gets locked up in a zoo
Animal cruelty: Dumbo cowers in the background as a circus master holds a whip in a blood-stained hand in the foreground
Get me away from here! Chicken Little manages to escape peril but quivers with terror as he suddenly realizes he's stood outside of Kentucky Fried Chicken
Fighting for freedom: Robin Hood is seen tied up as a line of riot police walk behind him in the background
Alice from Alice and Wonderland looks as equally as lost in the world as she wanders around the streets with a suspicious-looking bottle of liquid in her hand.
Her hollowed-out, gaunt appearance suggests heroin addiction.
Explaining the inspiration for his Unhappily Ever After series Mr Hong told the Huffington Post: 'The idea just popped in my head to put Disney princesses into environments that they wouldn't be associated with.
'Once I started putting them together, I realized a lot of social issues that are always important to me could be woven in as well.
Corrupted: Alice from Alice and Wonderland wanders around the streets with a suspicious-looking bottle of liquid in her hand - her hollowed-out appearance suggests heroin addiction
Discrimination: This poster featuring Tiana from the Princess and the Frog focuses on racism in America during the early 1920s - a topic the Disney film did not address
Stripped of natural beauty: Pocahontas and warrior Kocoum leave the countryside for a glitzy casino
Alone and afraid: Esmeralda from the Hunchback of Notre Dame wanders the streets of Paris with Djali the goat secreted under her hood
'I think that's what has made it really successful and a bit controversial as well, so I'm glad it has started debates and discussions on the issues of racism, animal abuse, drugs, etc.'
Mr Hong highlights on his Tumblr page that he is actually a 'big fan' of Disney animation.
Indeed, he has worked on an array of projects for Walt Disney over his 16-year career. However, unlike his latest series, he embraced the 'fairytale ending' on each occasion.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2633879/Not-happily-Disney-characters-battle-poverty-natural-disaster-pollution-artist-imagines-real-world.html#ixzz32I5asxHW
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