The Grand Californian Grand Opening
Page 2 of 15

Ceremony - Page 2

Peter Dominick
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RealVideo: Peter Dominick, Architect. 3 minutes, 47 seconds.  (Low bandwidth • High bandwidth)

Peter Dominick: Thank you, Tony. As Tony mentioned, the basic philosophy of the arts and crafts design is to bring together architecture, art, landscape and the decorative arts in a natural setting; to restore the humaneness and dignity of the design effort to rejuvenate men’s souls, hearts and minds from the drudgery of the machine or the digital age. Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel is perhaps the largest structure ever conceived in the arts and crafts style which has historically been - as you know - has been residential in focus, size and execution. And the garden was always the key influence in the design of arts and crafts structures. In this case we shifted the scale of the hotel to include the scale of the forest particularly those along California's coastlines with their Monterrey pines and the spectacular groves of redwoods and sequoias providing an appropriate scale and inspiration for a project as immense as Disney’s Grand Californian.

Peter Dominick recounts the conception of the Grand Californian Hotel.
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Peter Dominick: Tony asked me to say a few words about the beginning of the design process. I’m reminded of a birthday party - I was at recently a 50th birthday party where the recipient’s father who, was 85 years old, jumped to his feet. He said, as he began his toast, I remember the night that Mary was born and the older sister groaned at that point and said 'oh dad don’t start there' and without missing a beat and he said I remember the night that Mary was conceived. (laughs)

The conception of this hotel was absolutely fascinating with the research and study that went into the arts and crafts movement. As it moved from its European roots across the nation to California and the inspiration that we found with the architecture of northern and southern California. Obviously, as an architect you can’t really build buildings of this scale and complexity today without a great team. I pause and give thanks to the great team that was put together by Walt Disney, their Imagineers, their operators, the administrators, the executives, all of whom participated in this project. (applause) I speak on behalf of all of us when I say I’m very pleased and proud of the result.

I’d like to end with a quote from John Muir which seems appropriate in terms of its capturing the spirit of this hotel: “Climb the mountains and get their good tidings, nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into the trees. Winds blow their freshness into you and the storms their energy while care drops off like autumn leaves."  Thank you very much.

Tony Bruno: Thank you Peter. And now it is my great pleasure to welcome the president of the Disneyland Resort, Cynthia Harriss.

Tony Bruno welcomes Cynthia Harriss to the stage with a hug.
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