Star Wars Art: Visions - My Top 5 by Jeff Bond

Thanks to Amy Franklin over at Abrams Books, CCD were lucky enough to recieve two copies of the wonderful new book Star Wars Art: Visions. While the whole book is phenomenal, we thought the best way to share it with you guys would be to pick our favorite 5 pictures out of the book. Talk about a tough job... they are all so great!!! You can purchase the book at your local bookstore or by clicking here. CCD strongly recommends this book for all the Star War Geeks, for which you need to find a gift, during the Xmas season. So with no further ado, here is Jeff Bond's top 5 pcitures from Star Wars Art: Visions... 



Boba Fett, 'The Hunter' by M. Kungl

With the usage of brilliant colors and sharp edged shapes in the the design, this one IMMEDIATELY jumped out at me. About the piece the artist, Michel Kungl said this:

"Having mechanical attributes, Boba Fett enabled me to paint some of my favorite gadgets and objects, including the rocket pack with flame exhaust (his trademark firearm) and distressed-metal armor. 

***Please click Read more below to see the rest of Jeff Bond's Favorite Star Wars: Visions Pics*** 



'Jabba the Hutt: High School Reunion'
by C.F. Payne

This one spoke to the jokester in me. I love to see my favorite Star Wars characters re-imagined in ways I wouldn't expect. Theres also something about the glasses and placement of Jabba's face that also quietly reminded me of James Earl Jones, the voice of Darth Vader, of course.

"The idea of Jabba the Hutt's graduation picture made me laugh. But it also became a nice vehicle to connect the dots of George Lucas' film career with his first hit, 'American Graffiti', and the Star Wars Saga." said artist C.F. Payne of his work

Note the hints of other some of the other Star Wars cast in connecting frames...and the written well wishes, and otherwise, to Jabba in the future. Fun!





'Vader's Dream- A Vision From Padme
("I will safe-keep yourt good heart, Dear  One,
until you are ready for it's return.")' by Kirk Reinert



This next one spoke to me on many levels. I first thought of the artists inclusiveness of the female Star Wars nerds of the world. The title and design seemed to reach out to the romance novel reader or young 'Twilight' enthusiast telling them it was OK to embrace Star Wars. 

Mr. Reinert expanded on his work, saying, "I wanted the general nature of this dream scene to feel very human, as opposed to Vader's real -life loss of humanity, both physically and spiritually. Vader is dreaming about himself..." 

The artist depicts Padme nurturingly trying to urge Anakin to the side of good as the Dark Side manifests itself and physically pulls it's lord toward the dark. 



'Young Lando' by Alex Bostic

Ah, Young Lando! Where have you been? What have you seen out there? 

"This was a fun painting for me," said artist Alex Bostic, "because Lando is a black man in the future." 

More than that, he's THE black man in the future! Maybe it's just me who's regularly drawn to the smooth brother in films like Star Wars and want to no much more about his past. With this piece, Bostic gives us some ideas. My first thought was "Bah! Lando don't got no light saber!" but than it lead me to thinking what cool scenario may have left him with the saber of a Sith Lord in his possession. And what of the flag behind him hinting of a earlier date 1955? So much story here. The art itself is just as cool as the character it portrays.



'Rancor' by Artantzazu Martinez 



My last pick was that of this Rancor and what may be this particular beast's master. The artist's Spanish influence on the gown and headpiece of the regal keeper as she reaches for the remains of a litesaber left behind after it's last meal perhaps? The use of oil paint on linen makes the character in the forefront almost photo-realistic to me and almost makes me believe this is a scene cut from the film rather than a painters work.

"The first time I saw the film 'Return of the Jedi', I was seven years old, and it made a lasting impression on me. Still today, twenty-five years on, adventure, fantasy, and philosophy are some of my my core interests in life and work." The words of artist Arantzazu Martinez...but, they very well could be my own.

'The Stuff That Dreams Are Made of' by Peter Ferk

I must say,  when I was asked to submit 5 favorite works from the book, I found it hard to contain them down to even my top 15. Each of the 90 plus works were not only breathtaking they were in my favorite medium....Fucking Star Wars! So I'd be remised not to include this honorable mention. The work below could very well have been any end table in my house for the first 15 years of my life. 

"I wanted to show a different side of the films: the stories that exist in the minds of children as they play with the toys," said the piece's creator Peter Ferk.

 Those bedsheets that flow, tabletop, underneath the collection of ships and blasters are actual bedsheets that adorned my brother's bed for more than a decade...and most likely, Peter's as well. 

Thanks again to Amy and the artists for putting together this wonderful book!!!