The name Ralph McQuarrie is one that should be a household name. He was the very first person to be hired by George Lucas to bring his idea Star Wars to the big screen. His conceptual paintings for all three original Star Wars films helped shaped the imaginations of an entire generation and every one since.

Saturday, March 3rd 2012 we lost that amazing mind at the age of 82. McQuarrie’s biggest impact on the world will be his work on the Star Wars films, but we would be remiss of we didn’t acknowledge some of his other conceptual works, including Back to the Future and the failed reboot of the original Star Trek, Phase II.

His early designs for the original Star Wars have grown a cult life of their own, with action figures, art prints and even Halloween costumes devoted to his earliest concepts. This is rarefied air in the world of conceptual art, as the very nature of the job is that your work will be twisted and changed for the final product.

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Two things in particular that are cool and go well together: Comic-Con and great art. With that in mind it makes complete sense that one of my favorite groups of people, the folks who run the Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, TX, have put together a great collection of contemporary movie poster art and are bringing it to Cominc-Con next week.

They will be located in the main exhibition hall in booth #433 and will release new posters, have artists signings as well as offer rare archival posters. All poster releases will be announced via their Twitter account: @MondoNews

As if that wasn’t enough, Mondo is also working with The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Margaret Herrick Library to preserve the company’s growing collection of original film posters designed by contemporary graphic artists. The first group of the Alamo Drafthouse’s Mondo posters arriving at the Herrick will include the latest print, a poster for the classic horror film “Frankenstein” (1931), created by Drew Struzan.

You can take a look at past Mondo art (including the awesome They Live poster by Shepard Fairey above)  by going to their website.

For those of you going to Comic-Con next week this is sure to be a must see. I know we’ll be there.

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Never let it be said a violent film like Inglourious Basterds can’t also serve the public interest and give back a little something. What am I talking about?

Well, tomorrow at L.A.’s Upper Playground Gallery, in conjuction with The Weinstein Company, will be an exhibition of alternative poster art for the film from a variety of contemporary artists including David Choe, N8 Van Dyke, Morning Breath and Grotesk. The posters, all signed by director Quentin Tarantino, will be sold and the proceeds will benefit the Red Cross’ Haiti relief efforts.

Check out al the posters at the gallery’s website. Also, here’s more info from the official press release:

THE LOST ART OF THE FILM “INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS”

BENEFIT ART PROGRAM TO HELP RAISE MONEY FOR THE VICTIMS OF THE HAITI EARTHQUAKE

SA Studios Global’s Film Marketing Division has teamed up with Quentin Tarantino, Upper Playground and The Weinstein Company to present, THE LOST ART OF INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS.

On February 18th, 2010 from 6p – 9p the world will get to preview and purchase the “Lost Art of Inglorious Basterds” at The Upper Playground Art Gallery in Downtown Los Angeles. All proceeds from this program will be donated to The American Red Cross to help the victims of the Haiti Earthquake.

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With the birth of fan fiction and pop art many years ago, the mainstream world was introduced to the artistic side of fandom. There have been plenty of unoriginal outlets for this medium, but with those also come some incredible (or incredibly odd) pieces of work.

Now that ABC’s LOST is going into it’s 6th and final season, artistic fans everywhere (or in this case, the greater Los Angeles area) are stepping up to contribute to The LOST Underground Art Show. The exhibit is currently running until Thursday night in downtown LA’s Gallery 1988, and you can even purchase some of the art from the exhibitors’ website, Damon, Carlton, And A Polar Bear.com.

The art varies from pop-like canvas style to physical models and figures (such as the Dharma polar bear). Check out a bunch of the pieces after the jump, and check out the full list of work at their website. Definitely worth it for a fan of the show.

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