OCEANSIDE — A former Disney animator is making his solo debut at the Oceanside Museum of Art with a collection of paintings that, through a blend of realism and character art, tell the story of Black Americana.
Marshall Toomey had always enjoyed painting – even as a child growing up in Kansas City, Missouri, when his dream was to create a syndicated comic strip that would run in every newspaper in the world.
“I wanted to be the world’s greatest comic artist,” Toomey said.
To this day, Toomey recalls a conversation he had with his father when he was 8 years old about possibly working for Disney.
“That conversation never left my mind,” he said.
When Toomey was 24, he bought a one-way ticket to Hollywood, determined to become an animator. That move, tied with his drive and talent, landed him a professional character as an animator that would last for nearly 40 years.
“I got my first job that first week,” he said.
Toomey later went on to spend 20 years at Disney, just like his father envisioned all those years ago.
Toomey worked on classic movies like “Rescuers Down Under,” “The Lion King,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “Aladdin,” “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” “Hercules,” “Princess and the Frog” and “Brother Bear.”
After retiring from Disney, Toomey began painting for himself. He started out with more realistic portraits highlighting black history, but the seriousness of his paintings weighed heavy on the artist’s shoulders.
“I needed to take a break,” he said.
Switching up his artistic style once again, Toomey created “The Shop,” which depicts a man getting a haircut and manicure while enjoying a drink at a barbershop. The painting features character art reminiscent of Toomey’s classic Disney animations to tell the story of his experience at a barbershop.
Toomey submitted the piece to the Oceanside Museum of Art’s 2023 Artist Alliance Biennial show and won the grand prize: an exhibit of his own artwork in the museum.
Over the next year, Toomey painted more pieces that paid homage to Black Americana and were also autobiographical in nature, like the barbershop scenario in “The Shop ” or “Praise,” which depicts a young boy staring wide-eyed as a woman appears to fall over him in church, which also happened to him as a child.
In his painting “First Glance,” Toomey captures the surprised expression of a man who spots someone at a bus stop wearing Día de Los Muertos sugar skull makeup — a sight that wasn’t as common while growing up in Kansas City. The artwork is inspired by a real moment from 1977, during Toomey’s first year in California, when he lived a block from Hollywood Boulevard.
“I knew nothing about the Day of the Dead celebration, and it scared the crap out of me,” he said, laughing.
Though most of the art pieces in “Black Americana” have a humorous side, Toomey also balances his show with a more somber tone through his painting, “The Arrest of Martin Luther King.”
Toomey wants his audience to be entertained by his art, which blends the humorous side of life with the hard times.
“There’s a lot of seriousness in the Black art world – but we’ve got to smile, which is why I did this show,” Toomey said. “We have to smile, and I hope that’s what people take away from this.”
Toomey also encouraged other artists to loosen up and have fun while creating art.
“If you’re an artist, remember to have fun and to enjoy what you do,” Toomey said. “Don’t get caught up in the seriousness – remember to enjoy it.”
“Marshall Toomey: Black Americana” is open now until April 13 in the Oceanside Museum of Art, located at 704 Pier View Way downtown.
The museum opens at 11 a.m. Wednesday through Sunday and closes at 5 p.m. most days and 8 p.m. on Friday evenings. It is closed on Monday and Tuesday.
