Drew Struzan, the legendary artist best known for designing some of the most iconic movie posters of all time (including multiple installments of the Star Wars series), has passed away at the age of 78. News of Struzan’s death was confirmed on Struzan’s official Instagram account in a post stating that he died on Monday, October 13th. “I feel it is important that you all know how many times he expressed to me the joy he felt knowing how much you appreciated his art,” the post partially reads. According to a statement from Struzan’s family, complications from Alzheimer’s disease was the cause of death.
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Struzan was born in Oregon City, Oregon, on March 18, 1947. He decided to pursue a career in art by attending the ArtCenter College of Design in California. Before he became famous for his work on movie posters, Struzan made a name for himself designing album covers for prolific artists such as the Beach Boys, Roy Orbison, Black Sabbath, and more. In the 1970s, Struzan co-founded a company called Pencil Pushers and began designing movie posters. His work caught the eye of Charles White III, who called upon Struzan for help creating a poster for the theatrical re-release of the original Star Wars movie.
Struzan’s distinct style and technique made him an in-demand talent in the industry, and soon he was designing posters for a plethora of blockbusters, including E.T. – the Extra-Terrestrial, Back to the Future, and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Struzan announced his retirement in 2008 after completing artwork for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, but he returned at numerous points in the last decade, designing a special poster for Star Wars: The Force Awakens and the How to Train Your Dragon trilogy.
Drew Struzan’s Career Was Celebrated in a Documentary
Decades after movie fans started hanging his artwork on their walls, Struzan finally got his share of the spotlight thanks to the documentary Drew: The Man Behind the Poster. Directed by Erik Sharkley, the film examines Struzan’s legendary career and features interviews from well-known directors he worked with, including George Lucas and Guillermo del Toro. For those interested in checking the documentary out and learning more about the iconic artist, Drew: The Man Behind the Poster is available to rent or purchase on Amazon and is streaming free on Kanopy as of this writing.
Posters aren’t recognized by industry award bodies such as the Academy Awards or Golden Globes, but Struzan still earned numerous accolades throughout his career. He is a member of the Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame and has received lifetime achievement awards from the Saturn Awards, the Comic Art Professional Society (recognizing his work in comics), and the Art Center College of Design Alumni.
Throughout his career, Struzan was highly respected, and he is widely considered to be one of the greatest poster artists of all time. In the documentary Drew: The Man Behind the Poster, actor Michael J. Fox perfectly summarized what made Struzan’s work stand out. “It’s not just an ad, you know? It’s the first notes of a piece. It’s the beginning of the story,” he said. Struzan saw himself as a storyteller and worked hard to evoke specific feelings in his posters. He tried to encapsulate the movie’s narrative and tone with his paintings, and his posters left an impression on multiple generations of viewers.
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Image courtesy of Focus Features.
