Battlestar Galactica was very fortunate to gain the skills of Ralph McQuarrie, the now-famous artist who illustrated the key components of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi. Concurrently, Frank Frazetta, known primarily for his Conan the Barbarian illustrations, also created some early production artwork for the series.

The concepts changed over time, although in most cases, the basic elements remained. Most drastically altered of all were the Cylons, originally envisioned as some 1950s styled alien invaders, they gained their own distinct look and style. The first version of the Colonial Viper was also quickly abandoned but later revived as the Starfury fighter for Glen Larson's Buck Rogers series.

Today, copies of Galactica artwork are difficult to obtain. Never reprinted in the fashion that Star Trek and Star Wars art has been, Battlestar Galactica artwork remain more elusive but not less appealing.