STAR WARS: RETURN OF THE JEDI: IMPERIAL GUARD

Topps Trading Card Art, STAR WARS GALAXY Series 1, Emperor's Royal Guard.

Back in 1993, Topps released its first series of STAR WARS GALAXY trading card sets featuring art by numerous professionals and legends throughout the comics and movie poster illustration fields. I was honored to have been included among them, but I was disappointed to learn that all the most popular Star Wars characters had already been reserved. I knew that it was likely that George Lucas would sweep in to purchase all the art once everything was published, so I wanted to at least illustrate something of sufficient value. I selected the Royal Guard for their impressive stature and bright, noticeable color. Adding a few artistic liberties, I came up with a flashy composition which also allowed me to include a couple special guests as a cheat.
Now, this is my re-working of the design that was actually printed. I recently chose to revisit this illustration with new Photoshop skills.