YOURS TRULY

Cover illustration for My Jedi Journal

May 05, 2025

In his hut on Dagobah, Yoda sits at a stone slab table with his chin resting upon the back of his hand. He holds a feathered quill in his other hand as he writes on a scroll rolled out in front of him. The ends of the scroll are capped in gold as is the lid of the ink well to his right which is flipped open. The ink well is painted purple with pink polka dots. Behind Yoda, the stone wall is tinged an earthy red. Three oblong ovals offer a view out to the swamp. — YOURS TRULY (1983) Acrylic on Watercolor Board - 28" X 22"

When Del Rey Books commissioned me to do this portrait of the Master Jedi, Lucasfilms sent me black and white movie still photos to use as reference. I was quite disappointed that I couldn't have a sitting with my subject in person!

The paining was eventually used on a novelty item called My Jedi Journal.

Share The Art of Michael Whelan

Preliminary pencil sketch for YOURS TRULY. Yoda holds the feathered quill to his chin contemplatively as he thinks of what to write. A scroll is rolled out on the stone in front of him. A pig-faced critter pokes out of a recess in the makeshift desk. The cap of his ink well stands vertically on its hinge. Behind the long plume of his pen, a hole in the wall is light while the hole on the left is shaded black. — Pencil study for YOURS TRULY

Additional images from YOURS TRULY

LEFT: Detail from YOURS TRULY featuring Yoda sitting with chin resting on the back of his hand. His chubby fingers end with curling talons, but he stares at the reader directly with a warmth radiating from his round, wizened face. Wrinkles line his face, not singular creases but layered like strata over his eye lids and forehead. His long ears point outward at different angles. Filaments of hair catch the light. A scroll is rolled out on his desk. His other hand rests on a scroll rolled out on his desk as if he's paused his writing to acknowledge our presence. RIGHT: Figure detail from YOURS TRULY featuring Yoda sitting at a stone table in his hut on Dagobah. He rests his chin upon the back of his hands as he holds a feathered quill in his other hand, prepared to write on the scroll rolled out in front of him. A decorative inkwell, purple with pink polkadots, sits on the corner of the slab. — Details from YOURS TRULY

Book cover for MY JEDI JOURNAL published by Ballantine. — *My Jedi Journal*, Ballantine Books

Share your thoughts…

We’d love to hear your feedback. Please let us know your thoughts, questions, etc!

Like what you see? Subscribe!

We’re posting art every day on Substack. Don’t want to miss anything? Subscribe to get a weekly email including a recap of daily art posts.

To receive every art post by email, you can opt-in by visiting your account and then clicking the toggle for Daily Art.

YOURS TRULY

Cover illustration for My Jedi Journal

Additional images from YOURS TRULY

Share your thoughts…

Like what you see? Subscribe!

Discussion about this post