Fantasy and science fiction has one of the all-time greats died. Artist Greg Hildebrandt, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Marvel and Magical: The GatheringHe and his twin brother Tim, who died in 2006, were the duo The Hildebrandt Brothers until they decided to pursue a solo career in 1981.
The duo was perhaps best known for the “Style B” poster (above) for the original Star Wars In 1977. Released in the UK (Tom Jung’s Style A was the original US poster), the art shows Luke Skywalker heroically raising his lightsaber above his head in the same way that King Arthur used Excalibur. She’s flanked by blaster-toting Princess Leia with C-3PO and R2-D2 in the background. Darth Vader’s imposing mask stares at them in the background amid a sea of stars, the Death Star and starfighters.
As for Luke and Leia’s striking lack of resemblance to Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher, neither the Hildebrandt brothers nor Jung had access to photos of the actors. So they settled for generic hero images that could have been ripped from the covers of 1970s fantasy books. (If not screen-accurate, still rad.) The Hildebrandt poster was used in the UK until January 1978, when it was replaced by Tom Chantrell’s ‘Style C’ poster featuring the current cast.
The brothers were also associated with a strong line The Lord of the Rings calendars. Decades before Peter Jackson brought the films to life (and even before the 1978 animated version), their art—using influences from the classic Disney films—was the preeminent visualization of Tolkien’s epic for many 1970s fantasy readers.
Hildebrandt’s many other projects include comics for Marvel and DC, illustrations for Wizards of the Coast (Magical: The Gathering and Harry Potter), magazines Omni, Heavy Metal and Amazing StoriesA long list of album art and book covers for Trans-Siberian Orchestra and Black Sabbath.
Hildebrandt also fought for freedom with his artistic talents. Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, he contributed illustrations for the US Operation benefit anthology comic series. Profits were donated to Ukrainian refugee relief efforts. He explained his decision he wrote“Any project where I can stop Putin with my art is a project I will join with all my heart, soul and mind.”
