Star Wars Art: Visions by George Lucas

Star Wars Art: Visions Reviews

• 
  Andrew

  Okay here is how the last week has been for me - travelling with work (and they paid for it) great, visiting Warsaw - amazing, return flight thought storm Callum Hell, coming down with Sinus cold - nightmare, finding a whole stack of books I ordered awesome.
  
  So forgive me if you will see a whole load of books being uploaded in a short period of time as I was either too busy to catch up or too ill to bother. But I am trying to catch up.
  
  So here is the first. This was a book I had known about for some time as its basically a collection of artwork by various famous artists (some directly others not at all - connected to the franchise) who were influenced by the StarWars films and the universe they were set it. Some are highly stylised and contain only the most tenuous links others look like they are lost scenes which were edited out at the last moment.
  
  What I love about this book is that they are (mostly) faithful to the films and yet are totally unexpected and different. For me it fills in the gaps and make the whole universe more richer and fuller after all is it just me or have you ever wondered what happened between the films (I know that some books have tried to fill in the gaps most famously the Aftermath trilogy).
  
  So another great book to add to rather worryingly large collection of Starwars artwork books but hey am not counting.
• 
  Parka

  
  
  (
  More pictures at parkablogs.com)
  
  This isn't the concept art book I imagined or was expecting. This isn't a concept art book at all.
  
  Star Wars Art: Visions is more of a fan art book, except the 'fans' here are some of the best illustrators around. Think Moebius, Alex Ross, Syd Mead, Julie Bell and Boris Vallejo, H.R. Giger, Peter de Seve and James Christensen. There are 93 guest artists in all. Wow!
  
  George Lucas has invited all these fine artists to create art for Star Wars, in their own style and interpretation. You'll see art from all sorts of styles, ranging from impressionist to manga to Picasso, punk(?), collage and more.
  
  The book itself is huge, and the prints are large. You can see the details of the brush strokes and all. And most of the paintings are created traditionally.
  
  The subjects are pretty cool, especially the more different ones like Kermit the Frog fishing with Yoda (from Peter de Seve), or the manga Leia which looks like she's from an alternate universe, or (gasp!) a nude Aayla.
  
  This is a great collection of quality art. Easily recommended to any Star Wars fan.
• 
  Bailey Masters

  It is a dark time for the rebellion as imperial forces pursue rebel forces across the galaxy. But not so on Dagobah where yoda is inhaling the last of his death sticks.
  
  "Many parsecs to dagobah young skywalker must travel hmmm? Time we have Master the Frog. Spot of fishing hmm?"
  
  A banjo appears atop a rock. Green fingers. Unblinking eyes. Mist carries Kermit's croaked out melody:
  
  "There's a place where I often sit, just me, myself and I, on my pond. There the water's fresh and clean, and the grass is green like the smile on my face."
  
  A river of colour flows from yoda's death stick into the grey dagobah mist.
  
  "hmmm.. agree yes Master the Frog. Easy being green it is not"
  
  Anyway that's how I imagine we ended up with a picture of Yoda and Kermit doing a spot of fishing. We're just lucky someone was there to capture the moment.
• 
  Laura

  Gorgeous book with amazing Star Wars-inspired art, ranging from classic oil portraiture to collage and mixed media. Some really interesting and creative looks at a galaxy far, far away. My favorite pieces were a moving image of Vader dreaming of Padme and a realistic and detailed version of the battle of Hoth.
  
  Four stars instead of five because of the naked twi'leks (four by my count) and other assorted scantily-clad ladies. As a female fan, I'm so tired of that aspect of SW fandom...
• 
  Nicis

  I love how all the Abrams Star Wars editions are so extremely beautiful. The colors, the quality of the paper, in this particular case the art selection made by George Lucas 💕✨ Now I need the rest of the collection because it's totally worth it 👌
• 
  Dawn Livingston

  Love the concept. Open up the Star Wars universe to a very diverse group of excellent artists in their own right. When you turn the page you never know what you'll find. I think this book is so interesting it will entice even a fan of Star Wars. You don't have to be a Fan or FAN to want this book. I read three non-fic art books of Star Wars todays and this is my favorite. Maybe. Probably. It was just cool to see what the artists came up with.
  
  Get it from the library to take it for a test run so to speak then buy a copy on ebay.
• 
  Luis F.

  Una recopilación de ilustraciones de todo tipo de artistas en torno al universo de Star Wars. Una pequeña maravilla visual. (Demonios, hasta hay un Darth Vader de H.R. Giger...). Si eres fan de la saga de George Lucas, muy recomendable...
• 
  Melinda

  My rating is 3.5 out of 5 stars.
  
  The artwork in this was a little bit hit and miss for me. There were some that I thought were really cleverly done with nods to the stories of the characters depicted or having multiple scenes in a painting that looked focused on one at first glance. My favourite artworks were:
  - Regrets by Masey
  - Easy being Green, It's Not by Peter de Seve
  - Now My Enemy by Robert Bailey
• 
  Kirk

  For every "Oh, that's pretty cool and inventive" work, there are two "From which high schooler's notebook did they tear this?" works. Some show great imagination; others aspire only to duplicate a film still on the canvas. And then there are the sexy Twi'leks...did I just say that? If nothing else, the book would be good on your coffee table, as it offers a diverse collection of SW universe interpretations. Lucas had better be flattered that so much has been made over his creation.
• 
  Daniel Jacobo Meza

  Uno de los primeros libros de arte que le dedique el tiempo de apreciar.
  Un compendio de visiones sobre star wars de grandes artistas gráficos, todo un deleite visual en cada página.
  Sin duda me hizo replantear la adquisición de más libros de arte (no solo de star wars).
  
  De las últimas obras de calidad que se pueden obtener sobre el universo star wars.
• 
  Julie

  A great number of very talented artists contributed to this collection. I loved seeing their various takes on the Star Wars universe. I could, however, wish that Aayla Secura had gotten ONE appearance in which she wasn't lounging around naked or mostly-naked.
• 
  Michael

  I've read this before, his "making of" the original trilogy books are the better.
• 
  Tim Lapetino

  Solid collection of a variety of SW art pieces, but nothing thematically tying them together.
• 
  Thomas Myers

  Wonderfully beautiful and alluring works based on the Galaxy Far Far Away.
• 
  Adam Fisher

  I think I might just have to purchase this book, or maybe even get a copy of a few of these paintings for my house! The artistry and creativity found in these pages show how many dedicated artists and Star Wars nerds can show the world around them the true depth of what is seen in the "galaxy far far away".
  If you are a Star Wars fan, or even a Star Wars appreciator, you owe it to yourself to read and look through this book. High recommend.
• 
  Quinn Rollins

  One of the things I love most about Star Wars is the visual aesthetic that Ralph McQuarrie, Joe Johnston, and other artists brought to the big screen. Creating a universe where things look real and used, but still imaginative and exciting, you can look at the images they created and know if something is Star Wars or not. That visual aesthetic has become a sandbox for other artists to play in in the coffee table book Star Wars: Visions, edited by Acme Archives and published by Abrams.
  
  After a Foreword by George Lucas, and an Introduction by Lucasfilm Executive Editor J.W. Rinzler, you launch into 142 pages of color plates, usually full-page, with occasional sidebars that highlight details of some of the larger pieces. Most artists have focused on the Original Trilogy (I'm assuming most of these artists grew up with that trilogy like I did), but there are some that have chosen the Prequels as their setting. Some are straightforward, like Daniel E. Greene's oil portrait of Princess Leia in her classic buns and white robes, or Krystii Melaine's Fur Balls, showing Han Solo and a troop of Ewoks ready for battle. Others tell stories that happened outside the films, like Anthony J. Waichulis' journal entry by a very young Princess Leia, written in the Aurrabesh font of the Star Wars Universe. Several pay homage to Lucas' American Grafitti, and The Empire Strikes Back is the setting for more of the pictures than any of the other movies.
  
  The artists are like a who's who of comic book artists, technical artists, illustrators and movie production artists. They include Boris Vallejo, Gary Carter, James C. Christensen, M. Morgan Coleman, Peter de Seve, Peter Ferk, H.R. Giger, Michael Grimaldi, Eric Joyner, Moebius, Alex Ross, and dozens of others. The artists get bios in the back of the book, in case you're left wondering "where have I seen that before?"
  
  I originally checked this out as a library book, then purchased a copy online. I may even buy a second copy, because some of the pictures are worth framing. Personal favorites include Peter De Seve's Easy Being Green, It's Not, which has Kermit the Frog and Yoda side by side in a swamp fishing; how can I not love it? Peter Ferk's The Stuff That Dreams are Made Of has a pile of the old Kenner Star Wars toys on a Star Wars bedspread, including the AT-AT, Millennium Falcon, X-Wing fighter, A-Wing Fighter, and other toys that I grew up with and slept with every night.
  
  This book is a tribute to the artistry and imagination of Star Wars, and every page brings something new. If you're a fan of either the Original Trilogy or the Prequel Trilogy, you'll enjoy Star Wars: Visions.
• 
  Adam

  Star Wars consumed so much of my time, energy, and imagination as a child that it now holds an intrinsic nostalgic pleasure for me. For several months each year, I renew my addiction to the intangible, intensely romantic feeling I get when I immerse myself in this universe and soak my imagination in it. As I have matured and my tastes have grown towards Not-Star-Wars, I've become increasingly disillusioned by the slimy quality of most new media (and too much old media) in that universe – particularly novels. At the same time, I've grown to realize that much of the nostalgic/imaginative feeling I am addicted to is comprised of John Williams' score and the concept art of Ralph McQuarrie and his cohorts, and that relatively little of the appeal for me was ever in the main characters and their story.
  
  Thus, I was more than a little excited when I discovered this on the shelf at Borders and realized that it might be a book of recent concept art. I was more than pleasantly surprised to discover that this was a book of “real art” done by a panoply of real artists, who worked in a wide spread of styles to portray aspects of the Star Wars mythos that caught their imaginations. It's almost tragic how incredible this turned out. It illustrates beautifully the potential of the universe and of the stories in it (there are several particularly good paintings regarding the Anakin-Padme tragedy that make you wish that story had been handled well in the prequels). When real artistic craftsmanship is supplied, the mythos yields spectacular results. If only Lucas Licensing brought this kind of vision and artistry to the Expanded Universe. . .
• 
  Anton Klink

  A beautiful collection of Star Wars themed images from a large variety of artists. Some are traditional, heroic, detailed and very thematic - these will be loved by most readers. Others are whimsical and quirky - these will be an acquired taste. I for one welcomed the change of pace and it was interesting the see Star Wars from a different angle than what we are usually used to (nude studies, picasso style cubism, japanese anime etc). The weakest works in the book were by self-studied amateur artists, who strived to be serious but whose amateurish approches were thus all the more comical. Had those works been replaced by either the classical or the whimsical approach images, this would have been a five star book. Nevertheless, a solid effort also as it is.
• 
  Jeff Lanter

  If you enjoy art and Star Wars, this book is definitely worth looking through, if not owning. There is a real mix of high and low art with many different styles as well. I think every fan can flip through this book and find some art that really amazes and impresses and maybe a few that don't. There were a few pieces of artwork that felt too out of continuity with Star Wars, but when you have professional artists with different aesthetics and levels of interest in Star Wars, that is to be expected. I liked Star Wars Illustration better a little bit because I think a lot of the art is almost like fan service with how the artists are big Star Wars fans, but there is a lot of great stuff here and I'm really glad this book is on my book shelf.
• 
  Ryan Stewart

  Really a gorgeous book.
• 
  Dale Offret

  It reminded me of when I was young watching Episodes IV to VI for the first time. I remembered how I felt during the triumphs and tragedies of the characters I came to love and idealize over time. I enjoyed showing Episodes I to III to my younger children and helping them to understand what the story meant to me.
  
  My favorite paintings are:
  
  Regrets by Masey
  Luke's Lesson by Jacob A. Pfeiffer
  Empire of Style by Alex Ross
  Vader's Dream - A Visitation From Padme by Kirk Reinert
  Easy Being Green, It's Not by Peter De Seve
• 
  Michael Alexander

  What a fantastic book. This collection of Star Wars art isn't like most other art books. It isn't art from the movies and games, or concept art, or poster art, it is all original stuff. Multiple artists were given free reign to create a piece of art work inspired by their love of Star Wars. The results are fabulous. The pieces range from realistic oil paintings, to abstracts, to manga style drawings. There is even a painting of Yoda and Kermit the Frog fishing. A great pick up for any art, or Star Wars fan.
• 
  Andre

  George Lucas reached out to a number of artists to render their visions of Star Wars. The result is a beautiful coffee table-sized book. Many of the pieces should be hanging in art museums. This is a great idea. It would be cool to see other franchises trying the same thing. Some of these artists wouldn't normally create a piece based on a pop-cultural phenomenon like Star Wars.
• 
  C

  For the most part, nice to see serious art in the sw world - love some of these pieces. That said, the giger piece is a stretch and several others seem out of place. I guess it is nice to allow nudes in the sw galaxy, but why would a blue skinned species have pink nipples? Overall, though, a neat addition to a sw collection...
• 
  Arthur Cravan

  omg so awesome. There are a few pieces that didn't suit me personally, but the average ones are, in their own Star Warsy way, still awesome, & the awesome ones are just too much. No matter who you are, if your library has a copy, check it out. If you love Star Wars, you'll probably want this around the house. That is all.
• 
  Jery Schober

  Wonderful pictures which weren't as interesting as I hoped them to be. Often I had to look at the title or even the discription to understand what was Star Wars-y about the painting. Top art, top artists, curious selection that left me unsatisfied.
• 
  Ari Pérez

  Amazing artwork.
• 
  Zack

  Just pure awesome.