LightBox Expo is a brand new convention, to be held over the course of the coming weekend (Friday 6th – Sunday 8th September, Pasadena Convention Center CA), and is staking its position in the convention calendar by focusing very much on the artists of many industries in the fields of Animation, Live-Action, Illustration and Gaming – this almost comes at the idea of a comic con from a totally new direction.
But being a convention, it wouldn’t be a proper one without creating a new Awards category and LightBox Expo aren’t any different. All art has to come from somewhere and, in the realms of sci-fi, this is a whole other challenge, dreaming new worlds, technology, and civilizations out of thin air, in a solid and grounded fashion. This weekend will see the first ceremony of the LightBox Expo Concept Art Awards, celebrating those in the field of experimental and creative artwork, straight out of the brains of illustrators, off to be transformed into reality by directors, cinematographers, games programmers and the like.
One element of the Awards to be presented will be the Lifetime Achievement category, and the organizers of the selection committee have picked five names that serve as the pinnacle, the benchmark, it could be said the very Everest of science fiction artwork and conceptual artists:
- H.R. GIGER
- RALPH MCQUARRIE
- JEAN ‘MOEBIUS’ GIRARD
- RON COBB
- SYD MEAD
Heavens pity the poor souls who have to follow in these legends footsteps to be included, next year!
H.R. Giger (Alien), Ralph McQuarrie (Star Wars), Jean “Moebius” Giraud (TRON), Ron Cobb (Back to the Future), Syd Mead (Blade Runner) to receive the Concept Art Awards’ Inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award at LightBox Expo Saturday, September 7th in Pasadena
Legendary artists H.R. Giger (Alien), Ralph McQuarrie (Star Wars), Jean “Moebius” Giraud (TRON), Ron Cobb (Back to the Future), Syd Mead (Blade Runner) will be honored with the Concept Art Awards’ Inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award at LightBox Expo in Pasadena, CA.
The Concept Art Association will host its first annual award show: The Concept Art Awards, presented by LightBox Expo. The new industry award is the first of its kind to recognize and bring increased awareness of the role that concept artists throughout the world of movies, television, video games and more. The award ceremony is just of the highlights of LightBox Expo, a one-of-a-kind event featuring 250 of the best artists in the animation, illustration, live-action and gaming industries under one roof for the ultimate celebration of art.
Original Artwork by Ralph McQuarrie Restoration/Retoucher by Wade Lageose on December 2015 
The Concept Art Awards honors the behind-the-scenes individuals working within the entertainment industry that help create some of the most iconic art of our time. This year, in addition to awarding excellence in student character art, student environment art, independent character art, independent environment art, and fan art, the Concept Art Awards will be awarding five Lifetime Achievement Recipients. The Recipients are H.R. Giger (Alien), Ralph McQuarrie (Star Wars), Jean “Moebius” Giraud (TRON), Ron Cobb (Back to the Future) and Syd Mead (Blade Runner). These pioneers helped shape the worlds and characters of some of the biggest science fiction and fantasy movies of the 1970s and beyond and transformed the concept art industry into what it is today.
The Awards will be a celebration of the professional art created over the past year across film, series, and games. The event will be emceed by Jonah Ray (Mystery Science Theater 3000) and feature presenters such as Iain McCaig (Star Wars), Neville Page (Star Trek), Mingjue Helen Chen (Ralph Breaks the Internet), Bobby Chiu (Alice in Wonderland), Robh Ruppel Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End), Dan Luvisi and many more special guests will join the show throughout the night.
The trophies were created by CAA sponsor, Legacy Effects, and other sponsors of the night include SGX Print, Legion M, ImagineFX, Gallery Nucleus, The Writing Room, and Title Sponsor, LightBox Expo.
The Concept Art Association was created with the mission of elevating and raising the profile of concept artists, their art and their involvement in various entertainment industries. The Concept Art Association was founded by concept artist and Head of Visual Development at Marvel Studios, Ryan Meinerding; Talent Manager Rachel Meinerding; and Producer and Co-Founder of the BRIC Foundation, Nicole Hendrix.
Attendance to the Concept Art Awards show is free with a 3-Day or Saturday LightBox Expo pass and will be held in the Main Ballroom at the Pasadena Convention Center on Saturday, September 7th at 6:30PM.
LIGHTBOX EXPO 2019
LightBox Expo will feature 250 of the best artists in animation, illustration, live action and gaming industries under one roof for the ultimate celebration of art, including Patrick O’Keefe (Art Director of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse), Alvin Lee (Senior Artist on League of Legends), Kei Acedera (Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland), Mike Mignola (creator of Hellboy), Daniel Arriaga (Coco), Iain McCaig (Star Wars), Crash McCreery (Jurassic Park), Pernille Orum (DC Superhero Girls), Chris Sanders (writer/director of How to Train Your Dragon), Jana Schirmer (Visual Development Artist at Marvel Studios), Karla Ortiz (Dr. Strange), and more.
Tickets are on sale now, and information about the event, including a full list of artists who are appearing, can be found at: https://www.lightboxexpo.com/
Learn more about the Concept Art Association and the 2019 Concept Art Awards Presented by LightBox Expo at: https://www.conceptartassociation.com/
