George Lucas made his first trip to Comic-Con to talk about art
Greeted by a crowd of 6,500 chanting, “Lucas! Lu-cas!” George Lucas, the man who made geek culture palatable to the masses through fussy golden robots, made his inaugural trip to Comic-Con today. Entering Hall H, where for the last 20 years or so, the blockbusters he influenced have made public debuts, Lucas was the centerpiece of the largest Sunday panel in the convention’s history, according to The Hollywood Reporter. But Lucas, who retired from making space operas to make low-budget art movies in 2012, wasn’t plugging a film. He was there for a sneak preview of the soon-to-open Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Los Angeles. One of the reasons for founding the museum came from his refusal to sell his comic book collection. Having collected art since college, Lucas currently has more than 40,000 pieces that he’d like to display publicly, because what else is he doing with them? “I’ve been [collecting art] for 50 years now, and then it occurred to me, what am I going to do with it all?” he said. “I’ve worked with hundreds of illustrators in my life, and they’re all great, but they don’t get recognized for anything.”
In a panel moderated by Queen Latifah and featuring Lucasfilm artist Doug Chiang and director and museum board member Guillermo del Toro, Lucas presented museum pieces, including original art from Flash Gordon, Peanuts, Marvel, DC, Garfield, and Star Wars. He showcased a diverse range of styles and works by Robert Crumb, Norman Rockwell, Frida Kahlo, and Star Wars storyboard artist Ralph McQuarrie, pushing the philosophy that artistic value is in the eye of the beholder. “[Art] is more about a connection and emotional connection with the work, not how much it cost or what celebrity did it. I don’t think it’s anything anyone will tell you.” Lucas said. “If you have an emotional connection, then it’s art. I’ve discovered just from my experience of making movies that other people’s opinions don’t mean much.”
The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is expected to open in 2026.
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