| 12-Back Artwork | |
| It's quite unbelievable that the original artwork for these four items from the Star Wars 12-Backs are still in existence. They were done in ink and watercolor and each is only about the size of normal hardback book. These graced the backs of the cards for the original twelve action figures and were an artist's rendering of the ships that would be available as the first accessories for the figures. It was only after this packaging, on 20 backs, that actual photos of the toys were used by Kenner. These four pieces of art are in pristine condition and are an incredible testament to the line that changed the world of toys.
These paintings were based on photos of early conceptual models of the TIE Fighter, X-Wing Fighter, and Landspeeder action figure vehicles as shown on the 12-Back action figure cards. These images include the pictoral instructions of how to extend the original double telescoping lightsaber, which was later changed to the form most people are familiar with. Of course, an extremely few lucky customers actually found any double telescoping figures on 12-back cards, but some did get released on card. Arnaud and I realized we were both majorly interested in this amazing set when they came up at the Premier Collectible Auction in San Diego in 2008, so we decided we'd would go in together and split the lot, guaranteeing that we'd each get two pieces. I cannot stress enough how incredible it was to actually hold these and be grateful that they evaded disposal, unlike some other items at Kenner. These were produced by outside art/graphics firms but were property of Kenner. Like most other original artwork used on the toy line, none were signed by the individual artist. Unfortunately, Kenner wasn't known for crediting the artists for their work, so just about all the original paintings and sketches on Kenner packaging are uncredited. It's quite ironic that these unknown artists are perhaps responsible for some of the most widely-seen art in the Star Wars universe. This is pure history folks. |
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| Description by: | Gus Lopez, Chris Georgoulias |
| Photo: | Brian Semling |
| From the collection of: | Gus Lopez, Arnaud Grunberg |
| Country: | United States |
| Film: | A New Hope |
| Licensee: | Kenner |
| Year: | 1977 |
| Category: | Prototypes / Product Artwork |