Your favourite Tolkien artistes

[Elentári]

I'm pleased, too...though it was an obvious choice to tie-in with the movie release. I already have Lee's Hobbit paintings from a previous calendar but it wll be good to have some of Howe's as well.

[Samwise Hobson]

I was at the recent Return of the Ring convention organised by the Tolkien Society, in Loughborough in the English Midlands, a five-day event.

Among the great experiences I had there was the very comprehensive art show, sharing the same large space as the dealers. Among the artists were a wide range of people, from Cor Block, who knew Tolkien, to two new (to me) people: Jenny Dolfen and Jay Johnstone.

Jenny, while she has been mentioned earlier in this thread, was unknown to me before; so I was very impressed by her and her work. For people who would like to get a glimpse of what her work looked like, and her take on the convention, her blog is here:

http://goldseven.wordpress.com/2012/08/ ... -pictures/

Jay Johnstone was exhibiting for the first time; and I had a very nice talk with him one night, in which he spoke about how he came to start his Tolkien illustrations. Some can be seen on his website here:

http://www.jaystolkien.com/

[Alatar]

I love the Jenny Dolfen art Sam, not too keen on Jay's though. Thanks for sharing.

[Elentári]

Funnily enough I prefer Jay's work, in some respects: The "Manuscripts" I think are gorgeous, and a style that I have always felt suited to Middle-earth, if you think of Tolkien's works in the same vein as Chaucer, etc. I'm not so keen on the "Icons" or "Artworks" though.

I've recently become an admirer of the work of Elena Kukanova, who has produced some beautiful illustrations for the Children of Húrin.

Her work is wonderfully delicate, and I think these illustrations of Melian, and Finduilas & Túrin are stunning:

[Voronwë the Faithful]

The Melian doesn't really do it for me, but that Túrin and Finduilas is gorgeous!

Thanks for sharing, Sam and Elen!

[Primula Baggins]

Yes, thanks!

I knew of Jenny Dolfen and have admired much of her work, but I'd never seen Jay Johnstone's. The illuminated manuscript pages are lovely. The art and icons, where he applied Christian religious . . . ummm, I don't have the education for this, but I'd say metaphors, such as halos for Sam and Frodo and Galadriel in a Virgin Mary robe and pose . . . that doesn't work for me (and Tolkien I suspect would have disliked it very much). The quality of the work is admirable; it just goes down a road that seems wrong to me. As a connection, or an analogy, I'm absolutely certain it's something Tolkien did not intend.

That said, artists interpret, and put the interpretations out there, and the world is richer for that whether any individual likes them or not.

[axordil]

You know, I think I just realized why so many of the Tolkien-related images created by artists rise to the level of "nice" but not past it for me. The pieces are often technically proficient examples of draftsmanship and composition that fail to engage me emotionally.

Assuming it's not just me, why is that? Is it a matter of concentrating too much on the illustration aspect and not enough on expressing the emotional truth of the depicted moment?

Looking at the Finduilas and Túrin above had me thinking--boy, that's close to doing...something. But it's not quite there.

I think part of my issue may arise from the tradition of book illustration over the past 150 years, itself a byproduct to a great extent of the limitations of printing and engraving plates. There's a sameness of texture and color palette and especially contrast range that constrains the artists.

I'm having this odd feeling of deja vu now...have I said this before? Jeez, I've been doing the forum thing for a while...

[Frelga]

Jay Johnstone is new to me, as well, and I am highly impressed. As for icons, I see them as fitting into the "invented history" aspect of Tolkien's work. I can easily imagine them being done by some Gondorian painter, a few hundred years into the Fourth age.

[axordil]

Jay's illuminated mss. show a keen eye for medieval page design, color balance and character rendition. The iconic stuff is also well executed, and even though it's not my speed either, I do like how it's placed into a fresh context.

A couple of his less iconic, more formal pieces are quite fetching, precisely because they go interesting places: under Art Works, "Galadriel and Nenya" is a striking use of both a radically different palette from the norm and Symbolist design. It and "Lúthien and the Wolf" remind me of a darker Klimt.

[Elentári]

From Mordor to the Misty Mountains



British artist John Cockshaw creates the most amazing artwork of the landscapes of Middle-earth using his imagination, and a love of landscapes and macro photography. In an interview for TORn he explains

My plan [for the collection] was that it was going to look illustrative and have a cinematic quality, but any action and character content was going to happen on the periphery of the scene or out of shot to allow the features of the Middle-earth landscape to come to the fore, work their magic and stir the imagination. Any references to characters would mostly be small and distant. In the same immersive way you might engage with a given landscape when going on a long distance walk, say, the aim was to really draw viewers in establish a strong sense of viewpoint: that of a Middle-earth journeyman or wandering hobbit traversing the landscape on foot.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

I somehow missed this post. Very impressive work!!!

[Elentári]

I bought Donato Giancola's book of his Tolkien inspired paintings last year, and now I find he has painted The Professor himself, surrounded by his draft manuscripts!

http://www.donatoart.com/gallery/jrrtolkienb.html

I think it's rather stunning - lovely composition and lots of nice touches in the details...

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Indeed! I like that it is the late middle-aged Tolkien, rather than the elderly Tolkien so familiar from photos.

[WampusCat]

The icons greatly appeal to me, but then, I love iconography.

Icons have a specific function, and it's not to be decorative or realistic portrayals. They are highly symbolic windows into the realm of the soul. Gazing into them in silence -- letting them see you as you see them -- can be a profound experience of prayer.

In my case, these characters of Tolkien's have been so ingrained in my psyche for so many years that it would be no great stretch to use their images in the same way I might use a more traditional icon. Sitting with long-enduring Frodo or wise Gandalf might be very meaningful indeed.

[Elentári]

Just seen this drawing by yinyuming posted on deviantart

Absolutely breathtaking - worthy of Alan Lee!

[Alatar]

Thanks Gorgeous! Thanks Elen!

[Elentári]

Thanks Gorgeous! Thanks Elen!

Thanks, Al - that typo's made my day!

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Took me a while to figure out what the typo was. I guess I just took it for granted.

[Alatar]

[Elentári]

You're both very sweet!