Much as she did in Jabba’s Palace, Princess Leia is here to break something important out of a deep freeze. When Funko fired the bulk of creatives from Mondo, several exciting projects died, including Jason Edmiston’s plan to release an ongoing series of Star Wars art. Now, that series is back, and Leia is leading the way.
With the help of former Mondo creative director Justin Ishmael, Edmiston has moved the project to Bottleneck Gallery and on Thursday is releasing the second set of eyes from the series. First, it was Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader from Kenobi. Now, it’s Princess Leia and Stormtrooper from the original Star Wars: A New Hope.
“I’m very excited about my new partnership with Bottleneck Gallery for my Star Wars series,” Edmiston told io9 via email. “The creative relationship dynamics that I enjoyed in my time with Mondo have recently changed, and those friends have since moved on to new pursuits at some exciting pop culture companies. I decided it would be best for me to build a new relationship, to continue the Star Wars series with my old friend Justin Ishmael and my business colleagues at BNG. I respect their enthusiasm and openness to creative ideas in general.”
Licensed by Acme Archives, “The Princess of Alderaan” and “Soldiers of the Empire” are both 9 x 5 inches giclées that cost $35 each. They’ll both be released as timed editions from noon ET on Thursday, March 14 through 11:59 p.m. ET Sunday, March 17 at bottleneckgallery.com. Here they are.
“Princess Leia was a fun challenge for me,” Edmiston said. “Her innocent doe-eyes belie her determination and toughness. I wanted to capture her fearlessness as well as her beauty. Those terrific hair buns also don’t hurt when it comes to adding an element to enhance her recognizability.”
“Stormtroopers are perhaps the most iconic representation of the Star Wars character universe, and I had to paint the New Hope version early on in the series to give them the respect that they deserve,” the artist said. “They are the ‘skulls’ of pop culture. Mysterious and scary, and instantly relatable to everyone as something evil. I’d love to paint every version of Trooper there is. They are all incredibly designed.”
Yes, you read that right: this is, once again, just the beginning of a larger series. When io9 first debuted this series in 2022, Edmiston had big, big plans to do seemingly every character in the Star Wars universe, from the popular to the weird. You can read more about that here—but, that plan is now back on.
“Everything that I had initially dreamt of producing for this line, across any and all versions of the Star Wars Universe will hopefully continue to be developed here at BNG,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of fun things planned. Characters from movies, TV shows, games, animation, and maybe even a little Holiday Special if we’re permitted.”
We can’t wait. And, to pick these up be sure to visit bottleneckgallery.com from noon ET on Thursday, March 14 through 11:59 p.m. ET Sunday, March 17.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
