This is a review of Sculpting a Galaxy: Inside the Star Wars Model Shop (published November 14, 2006). This is “yet another” great resource for Star Wars fans and those especially interested in creatures, models, ships/vehicles, etc. It is a beautiful book and worth the money, but if you have the two Chronicles volumes (OT and/or Prequels, depending on your preferences), as well as perhaps The Making of Star Wars, some of what you find here may be duplicative. In my opinion, it is lacking in some areas and not as polished and comprehensive as some other Star Wars works.
Overview (from the publisher)
From Publishers Weekly
This meticulous look at the models, miniatures and sculptures that make up the Star Wars movie universe is sure to make the short list for fans. Model and sculpture designer Peterson takes the reader through a guided tour of the Star Wars series, giving extra attention to fan favorites. Some of the more popular vehicles, such as the AT-AT Walkers and the Millenium Falcon get their own detailed gatefolds. Peterson’s tight prose keeps the book on track, offering all sorts of trivia without dwelling on minutiae. While the later movies have certainly benefited from computer-generated special effects, he explains it was more cost-effective and realistic to create many of the sets, backgrounds and vehicles via sculptures and models. Readers will learn that the crowds watching the pod race from The Phantom Menace, for example, were not entirely computer generated-thousands of painted Q-Tips were used to fill out the stadium, “ultimately creating an image that looked very realistic.” Peterson covers everything from how to create fake blood for a severed arm (raspberry yogurt mixed with tempera paint) to employing wheelchair motors in order to enable R2-D2 to navigate the gritty Tunisian desert where the first film was shot. Fans will find everything from the holographic chess set from the first film to Darth Vader’s mask from Revenge of the Sith lovingly photographed and described in detail. Many of the models regularly tour museums, but this comprehensive examination offers fans a more informed appreciation for the work that went into the series.
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Book Description
From the producers of the acclaimed Dressing a Galaxy: The Costumes of Star Wars comes an inside look at the secrets behind the saga’s artful models and sculptures. Lorne Peterson, model and sculpture designer for the entire Star Wars saga, takes us on a journey through the intricate process of crafting and sculpting the models from sketch to screen and the artistry behind the dazzling results.
Sculpting a Galaxy: Inside the Star Wars Model Shop features more than 300 full-color photographs and illustrations from the Lucasfilm archives, models from all six films, interviews, images and text with concept sculptors, an overview of the ILM model shop from 1976 through today and numerous gatefolds of the most loved models.
ILM virtually redefined visual effects and blazed a trail into the digital realm, follow behind the camera and into the rarely seen workshops and an amazing look at the creation of movie magic. Sculpting a Galaxy: Inside the Star Wars Modelshop takes readers behind-the-scenes for the first in-depth look at these amazing models and the process behind their creation, punctuated by Lorne Peterson’s exuberance and dedication to craft.
This unique visual treat is a must-have for any Star Wars fan.
Family Travel Network. She has written for PBS and the University of Chicago, among others. She lives near Washington, D.C.
Book Facts (from the publisher)
Sculpting a Galaxy: Inside the Star Wars Model Shop
by Lorne Peterson (Author), George Lucas (Preface), Rick McCallum (Foreword), Phil Tippett (Afterword)List Price: $50.00
Amazon.com: $31.50
# Hardcover: 216 pages
# Publisher: Insight Editions (November 14, 2006)
# Language: English
# ISBN-10: 1933784032
# ISBN-13: 978-1933784038
# Product Dimensions: 12.9 x 9.6 x 1.3 inches
# Shipping Weight: 4.1 pound
Written Content (7/10)
While this volume is generally gear toward the great visuals, there is a good amount of information shared about the well known and iconic ships and creatures of the Star Wars universe. Obviously, the information is from a model shop perspective, so it is a new way to frame and provide insights into these works. There is also a good deal of content about considerations from the newer of the trilogies, such as issues related to High Definition.
Generally, the content is organized by type – Starships; Vehicles; Creatures, Droids, & Sculpts; Environments – then by subject (i.e.Tie Fighter, the Death Star, Cloud City, etc).
There is no real overall framing of the narrative in the book, and some of it comes across more as anecdotal. Every subject more or less stands on it’s own, with no real cross-referencing or sense of being brought into the world of model making.
Visual Collateral (7/10)
This is, in my opinion, the reason to buy the book. Great photography, some unique to this book, so it is another great visual Star Wars resource.
Many photos are full page, full bleed, and it is all full color. There are also some two page bleeds and two double-gatefold pulls outs (one for the Millennium Falcon, one for the AT-AT).
There are some really wonderful close-up, high focus photography, so for me, if you are a fan, even with the other great books out there, this is another must have if you love having these types of resources.
Presentation/Quality (6/10)
It’s a nice-looking, tallish hardcover book with a combo matte/reflective yet not “fingerprint magnet” jacket. The actual book is all black textured material with the title across the front, gold embossed.
The interior pages are of a fairly high quality, and I get the impression it will hold up to handling quite well. The black background pages (of which there are quite a few) are a bit of the “fingerprint magnet” variety, unfortunately.
One flaw I’ve found with my book is that the actual binding seems to be slightly offset – looking into the spine, while open, you can see the binding on some pages.
The content of the book is laid out in logical order, as mentioned previously, broken into some general categories (i.e. starships, environments, etc). My main criticism is that, because it is by category, then subject, then the next category, the Original Trilogy and Prequels are found in every section. So, flipping through the volume, you find it going from one trilogy to the next, which I find doesn’t quite flow right. This is just a personal preference, but I think it would have been better to focus on one trilogy then the next, or perhaps break it up into two volumes.
Another criticism, it seems as though the selection of the subjects is a bit random and not as comprehensive as other volumes (i.e. the Chronicles books).
The Table of Contents could have been improved by showing the transitions from OT to Prequel in each of the chapters.
Given the complexities of the subject matter (modeling), the Glossary is a scant one page. I think this could have been much more comprehensive.
I do really like the Visual Index, which shows thumbnails of all of the subjects in the book. This is a great idea, in that some of the subjects have obscure names, so this makes it much easier to find specific items.
In summary, it is a nice “coffee book-style” piece, but, in my opinion, there are better such books related to Star Wars.
Overall Value (6/10)
The retail price is $50.00, and can be found for close to $30.
This is an appropriate cost for what it is, but, as noted, the quality is not optimum and there are better Star Wars books.
Conclusion and Overall Rating (6.5/10)
I would characterize this book as primarily for the Star Wars completist or researcher, or those particularly interested in models and sculpts and/or pre-production.
As noted, there are generally better Star Wars books that are more comprehensive, such as the Chronicles volumes, so I would consider this as a nice supplement to those other books.
Jason De Bord