Sculpting a Galaxy: Inside the Star Wars Model Shop
Submitted by: Brian Wiser
At Wondercon in San Francisco, I had the genuine pleasure of meeting master model-maker Lorne Peterson. He was promoting his book “Sculpting a Galaxy: Inside the Star Wars Model Shop” by Insight Editions. Lorne was very friendly and gladly spent time answering questions in detail about his adventures. For me, having a positive personal connection with the author makes the book that much more interesting, and it is clear that a lot of Lorne is in this book as he takes readers on a journey that few could impart.
I’ve always been a fan of high quality art books, and this hardcover tome from Insight Editions certainly fits the bill. Beyond the high-quality paper and printing quality that defines any book from Insight, this volume delves into the Lucasfilm archives and shows the detailed stages of creating these models from sketches to the final screen versions. The chapters include Starships, Vehicles, Creatures Droids & Sculpts, and Environments. The six primary films are represented with over three hundred photographs and illustrations of the models as well as the Industrial Light & Magic model shop.
My favorite parts were seeing how the Millenium Falcon, Star Destroyer, and the Death Star were created. Then again, the AT-AT Walkers were fascinating too — clearly I have many favorite parts. Not only are there a variety of pictures of construction processes, but most importantly the stories are quite interesting.
For uber-fans, Insight also offers a limited edition with extra pages of content to delight the senses, a replica of Luke’s landspeeder, seven replicas of the Death Star surface models, and a DVD on the beginnings of the ILM model shop. This version is signed and numbered, limited to 3,000 copies.
Lorne was one of a handful of people who worked on all six Star Wars movies, and his knowledge and passion shine through in this breathtaking book any Star Wars fan would be proud to own.
Sculpting a Galaxy: Inside the Star Wars Model Shop
By Lorne Peterson, Preface by George Lucas
Hardcover, 216 pages
ISBN-10: 1-933784-03-2
$50.00 from $31.50
