Written by Bryan Stroud

Greg and Tim Hildebrandt - known as the Brothers Hildebrandt - (born January 23, 1939), are American twin brothers who worked collaboratively as fantasy and science fiction artists for many years. They produced illustrations for comic books, movie posters, children's books, posters, novels, calendars, advertisements, and trading cards. Tim Hildebrandt passed away on June 11, 2006, leaving Greg to continue their artistic legacy alone.

Another Kubert School instructor shared a few remembrances with me of his tenure. Odds are good you've seen the spectacular work of Greg Hildebrandt and didn't even know it. He and his late brother have done stunning work for years and the iconic Star Wars movie poster is only one example. Still at it after all these years, Greg (who just recently turned 80) continues to crank it out and does it in superlative fashion. Check out his offerings at his online art gallery if you're skeptical.

This interview originally took place via email on October 24, 2010.

Dream 1: Crucifiers - by Greg Hildebrandt.

Bryan Stroud: What led you to the Kubert school?

Greg Hildebrandt: My daughter, Mary, wanted to go to art school. I saw an ad for the Kubert School. I was a fan of Joe [Kubert]’s art. So she enrolled in the school. A few years later I decided to teach.

Stroud: Joe suggested it was a way to give back and laughed that it certainly wasn’t for the money. Any thoughts?

Hildebrandt: It definitely was not for the money. It was a thrill for me to teach at Joe’s school and to have the opportunity to work with other teachers that were great artists. I believe that I have a certain amount of artistic information to convey. I believe that I did a pretty good job of conveying it to my students and I had a really good time doing it.

Stroud: What was your specialty?

Hildebrandt: Painting is my specialty. My course was about light and its impact on color.

Stroud: Were any students particularly memorable?

Hildebrandt: Do you mean particularly memorable then or now? Then I remembered all of them when I was teaching. Today I remember the ones that are still in the business. Of course, Adam and Andy Kubert were two of my students and they are both memorable for sure. I remember the mistakes they made and how good they were and were not. I remember how quiet one was and how loud the other one was. And I remember how cool it was to have them both as students of mine.