Mondo’s got a new Star Wars poster set for tomorrow, December 28th, and it might be their most delightfully strange so far.  Created by Rob Jones, “King’s Lead Hat” re-imagines Darth Vader’s classic visage as an Empire facility.  Jones has a cool explanation for why he chose to go with this design as his contribution to the series, and you can read what he had to say after the jump.

Also after the jump you can check out the poster.  The screenprint is 24”x36” with metallic inks.  The edition is limited to 255 and each poster is signed and numbered by the artist.  The poster goes on sale tomorrow at a random time.  Be sure you’re following @MondoNews for the announcement.

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Here’s what Jones had to say about his design:

"There's a scene in Star Wars where Grand Moff Tarkin strides into his council room on the Death Star announcing the dissolution of the Imperial Senate. His officers express concern over the Emperor's ability to maintain control of star systems without this governing body. To this Tarkin retorts, 'Fear will keep the local systems in line. Fear of this battle station.'

This exchange made me consider the motivation behind the Emperor's construction of Darth Vader. I'm not referring to just the cybernetic bits maintaining Vader's body but also the active manipulation of his mind to bring him to the dark side. The Emperor created in Vader a weapon no different from the Death Star in its ultimate purpose, a means of generating fear amongst the vast populace he ruled. An administrative tool that became the executor of the Emperor's cruel commands. With that in mind, I decided to depict Vader as a facility harnessing and directing his immense natural power towards malicious ends."

For those who don't know about Mondo:

Mondo is the Alamo Drafthouse’s collectible art boutique, featuring designs from world famous artists based on licenses for popular TV and Movie properties including Star Wars, Star Trek & Universal Monsters. The posters are limited edition & screen printed.  The posters sell out at AMAZING speed.

http://mondotees.com/