I was deeply saddened to hear of the passing of perhaps the most influential and my all time personal favourite conceptual artist, Ralph McQuarrie. Without Ralph’s creative vision, it is undeniable that Star Wars would not have been the cult success it is today. When I look at Ralph’s paintings, from the duel between Deak Starkiller and Darth Vader, to the ice cold Hoth landscape, to the Droids R2-D2 & C-3PO wandering aimlessly through the Tatooine desert, I wonder what Star Wars would have been like had these visions of a great artist made the transition from canvas to cinema screen.
Ralph McQuarrie gave the Star Wars universe depth through his incredible attention to detail. Looking into one of his paintings is not just like viewing an image on a page, Ralph pulled you right into the action with every stroke of his brush. As I think of what the Original Star Wars universe would have looked like on the big screen had Ralph’s vision been fully followed through, I also wonder what Ralph McQuarrie could have contributed to the Prequel Trilogy, had he accepted Rick McCallum’s offer of becoming conceptual artist for George Lucas’ final instalments of this epic space opera we know so well. Ralph’s artistic vision defined Star Wars in my opinion, and his paintings are in my mind, just as memorable, just as exciting and equally as epic as the films themselves. Piecing together each of Ralph’s paintings, in chronological order, tell a story in themselves, and offer several different perceptions on Star Wars, and the galaxy in which the battle between good & evil takes place.
As a keen Action Figure collector, I was very excited to learn of Hasbro’s plans to create a series of Action Figures based on Ralph McQuarrie’s designs for characters such as Luke Skywalker, Han Solo & Darth Vader, amongst others. These figures gave fans of Star Wars a completely new appreciation for Ralph’s work, and were a small taste of what Star Wars, and the merchandise that followed, could indeed have looked like if Ralph’s concepts did indeed make the jump from paper to screen!
I read a phrase online recently, not long after Ralph McQuarrie’s passing on March 3rd, that helped me completely sum up my thoughts on Ralph McQuarrie:
“While George Lucas is the Maker, Ralph McQuarrie was the Creator.”
Ralph McQuarrie, forever remembered.