We recently covered the amazing Star Wars concept art of Ralph McQuarrie who created art for the original trilogy series. When the first ever Star Wars movie was released in 1977, CGI and animation hadn’t been invented. There was no blue or green screen, just practical special effects and the skill and talent of artists who would paint in the backgrounds of scenes with incredible detail.
The technique is known as matte painting and is still used today in movies and TV. It involves creating a life-like backdrop that is then place behind the foreground. These photographs take a look at the creation of paintings for Empire Strikes Back and Return Of The Jedi with art drawn by Ralph Mcquarrie himself as well as Michale Pangrazio and Chris Evans.
h/t Airows
