With less than three weeks until the Red Dot Auction, we wanted to share with you the stories of the artists who have donated art work (or in some cases, more than one) to this year’s Red Dot Auction. This fundraiser, now in its sixth year, benefits the programs of the Chuck Jones Center for Creativity. Today we feature artist Terri Hardin.

Terri has been an artist and puppeteer for over 30 years working in films and television.  Her credits include,Ghostbusters, Indian in the Cupboard, both Flintstone films, both Men In Black Films, Monkeybone, The Country Bears and Team America.  She’s worked with the Jim Henson Company since 1989. Her work can also be seen as ensemble on Disney’s new Muppet Show.

She was in the Disney/Henson hit TV show Dinosaurs, where she played Baby Sinclair’s arms, and she designed and built the Foster Imposters at the Character Shop, for those funny Foster Farms Chicken Commercials.  She has played the passenger chicken in these commercials since the beginning.

Terri is also a sculptor.  She is well known for her collectible figurines she creates for the Walt Disney Company. When she was a Walt Disney Imagineer, she designed rides and attractions for many of the parks. In Paris Disneyland you can walk through Dragon’s Lair and in Tokyo Disneyland., you can ride the Splash Mountain boat with the rabbit she sculpted, and sail down the main drop she created.

Before she worked for Walt Disney Imagineering she sculpted creatures and animals for many films including Jungle 2 Jungle, the drugged cat Tim Allen hits with a blow dart, in Relic, the prehistoric Ground Sloth skeleton, and the dove of peace and the presidential parakeets in Mars Attacks.

She is currently working on her Memoir working title “Little Zebra.”  The story of a how she was able to rise above adversity, keep her sense of humor and positive attitude to rise to success in the entertainment industry.