Description: Darth Vader was not originally supposed to wear a facemask. Ralph McQuarrie’s concept drawing of Vader boarding the Tantive IV was based on the idea that Vader would fly through space to reach the ship, requiring him to wear a breathing apparatus. The facemask remained and has become a modern-day icon of chilling doom.
Artist Profile: The vivid imagination of conceptual artist Ralph McQuarrie brought to life the characters and worlds envisioned by George Lucas. McQuarrie’s paintings and drawings were instrumental in the push to bring Lucas’s saga to the big screen, giving shape and form to a multitude of fantastic individuals, creatures, planets and technology encompassed in this epic tale. Developed in collaboration with McQuarrie himself, this remarkable action figure series pays tribute to the man whose art defined some of the most memorable characters in film history.
