Art and Middle Earth
ot...@pacbell.net
Greetings, all. Haven't dropped in on this ng in quite some time (and
then under a different sig), but always enjoy the discussions that go
on here.
A question I have found interesting is: What artistic depictions of
Tolkien's world and characters have you found to be closest to your
own conceptions? Anything you can come up with that fits the general
category of "artistic depiction" is fair game, including film
treatments and sound recordings. Given that we are all unique
individuals with differing tastes and experience, I expect the answers
will be widely varied, and hopefully some of you may be able to point
me toward ME-related material that I have heretofore <gasp> missed.
For myself, the definitive depiction of Tolkien's characters is found
in "A Hobbit's Journal," illustrated by (I think) Michael Green,
published by Running Press some time around 1980, and probably long
since out of print. Anyone here familiar with the book, or have it on
hand? If so, I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.
Haven't heard the BBC or Mind's Eye recordings of LOTR yet (someday, I
swear...) so for _aural_ depictions, I default to Roddy McDowall's
Samwise and John Huston's Gandalf from the Rankin-Bass "ROTK". Hope
that doesn't offend anyone _too_ badly, I know the Rankin-Bass films
have a bad rep with many people around here. Also hope I remembered
the actors' names correctly! :) OTOH, I _much_ prefer Bakshi's
version of Gollum...
OK, your turn!
ot...@pacbell.net
"The Man in Black"
ot...@pacbell.net
HDIJohn wrote:
>
> <<What artistic depictions of
> Tolkien's world and characters have you found to be closest to your
> own conceptions?>>
>
> are sure to differ widely. I myself think one of the single best LOTR paintings
> EVER is Michael Whelan's painting of Frodo and Sam on Orodruin in the aftermath
> of the destruction of the Ring, the earth and sky in turmoil, and Gandalf and
> the eagles can be seen in the heavens. Sam, looking skyward, cradling the
> exhausted Frodo, resigned to their fate there at the end of all things, is just
> marvelous.
I think I know the one you're talking about. No arguments here! Has
Whelan done any other Tolkien-related work, do you know?
> I happen to love Michael Kaluta's LOTR work; I think it reflects some of the
> sensibilities of Arthur Rackham, an artist that Tolkien loved, and I think JRRT
> would have appreciated Kaluta's work. Steven Hickman has also done some really
> good Tolkien pieces; the one gracing the cover of the 98 Tolkien calendar is my
> favorite of his.
<sound of noisy scribbling down of names for future reference>
> The current covers of the ballantine paperback editions of the Hobbit & LOTR I
> would rank among the WORST Tolkien paintings of all time.
In whole-hearted agreement with you there! Sometimes the publishing
world absolutely baffles me.
> That's my more than 2 cents worth for now.
>
> --John Bridges
"The Man in Black"
HDIJohn
<<What artistic depictions of
Tolkien's world and characters have you found to be closest to your
own conceptions?>>
As far as depictions of the actual, physical landscape of Middle Earth goes, I
don't think anyone can surpasse Alan Lee's beautiful watercolors. They capture
so well the intricate, woodsy, moist, green feel of the place that comes across
in the books so well. I think JRRT himself would be loving Lee's work.
As far as depictions of the characters go, this is where everybody's opinions
are sure to differ widely. I myself think one of the single best LOTR paintings
EVER is Michael Whelan's painting of Frodo and Sam on Orodruin in the aftermath
of the destruction of the Ring, the earth and sky in turmoil, and Gandalf and
the eagles can be seen in the heavens. Sam, looking skyward, cradling the
exhausted Frodo, resigned to their fate there at the end of all things, is just
marvelous.
I happen to love Michael Kaluta's LOTR work; I think it reflects some of the
sensibilities of Arthur Rackham, an artist that Tolkien loved, and I think JRRT
would have appreciated Kaluta's work. Steven Hickman has also done some really
good Tolkien pieces; the one gracing the cover of the 98 Tolkien calendar is my
favorite of his.
The Brothers Hildebrandt are very well known for their Tolkien work, but as
good as they are at putting down the paint (and they can REALLY paint), I don't
think they really approached the material with the right sensibilities. Their
stuff looks a little too posed and 'story-bookish'.
Artists I would love to see do future Tolkien work: Charles Vess, Brian Froud
(especially Tom Bombadil), James Gurney, Mark Zug, and, if I were allowed one
miracle, I'd resurrect NC Wyeth to do a whole bunch of Tolkien paintings.
The current covers of the ballantine paperback editions of the Hobbit & LOTR I
would rank among the WORST Tolkien paintings of all time. What's up with that
carrot nose that Gollum has? Uuuugggh. I can't look at those.
Celia Malm
hdi...@aol.com (HDIJohn) penned the following:
>As far as depictions of the actual, physical landscape of Middle Earth goes, I
>don't think anyone can surpasse Alan Lee's beautiful watercolors. They capture
>so well the intricate, woodsy, moist, green feel of the place that comes across
>in the books so well. I think JRRT himself would be loving Lee's work.
I happened to get to see the illustrated LotR the other day (beyond my
pocketbook, or I would have bought it), and I thought the paintings
were wonderful. They capture something *real* about Tolkien than no
other artist I've seen yet has. I especially liked the painting of
Gandalf and Frodo toward the beginning. Frodo LOOKS British, as he
should.
>As far as depictions of the characters go, this is where everybody's opinions
>are sure to differ widely. I myself think one of the single best LOTR paintings
>EVER is Michael Whelan's painting of Frodo and Sam on Orodruin in the aftermath
>of the destruction of the Ring, the earth and sky in turmoil, and Gandalf and
>the eagles can be seen in the heavens. Sam, looking skyward, cradling the
>exhausted Frodo, resigned to their fate there at the end of all things, is just
>marvelous.
I love that one, too.
>The Brothers Hildebrandt are very well known for their Tolkien work, but as
>good as they are at putting down the paint (and they can REALLY paint), I don't
>think they really approached the material with the right sensibilities. Their
>stuff looks a little too posed and 'story-bookish'.
I love Hildebrants' work, but I'd have to agree that they don't look
quite real. Also, I didn't like their depiction of Boromir.
>The current covers of the ballantine paperback editions of the Hobbit & LOTR I
>would rank among the WORST Tolkien paintings of all time. What's up with that
>carrot nose that Gollum has? Uuuugggh. I can't look at those.
I agree completely. One of them makes the characters look almost like
ancient Romans or something. Blah, blah, blah! One of the things I'd
do if I had a time machine is to go back and buy extra copies of the
old covers with Tolkien's own painting on them.
Cee
------------------------------------------------
"If I must be this...this thing they have made of me,
I shall at least give it my voice and my heart."
Walker Boh
Mike Williams
HDIJohn wrote:
>
> <<What artistic depictions of
> Tolkien's world and characters have you found to be closest to your
> own conceptions?>>
If you were to wake me in the middle of the night and ask that question,
I would probably say "There are none."
The general problem with illustrators of Tolkien's work is that they are
unrealistic and usually outright fantastic (e.g. Roger Garland).
Illustrators in the modern fantasy genre, from which most of the Tolkien
illustrators have been recruited, violate the basic tenets of
subcreation that Tolkien presented in "On Fairy Stories" (i.e. "the
perilous realm, and the air that blows in that country"). Fairy
stories, and presumably their illustrations, must be fundamentally
realistic. There is no other way to present a believable fairy story.
All the images that I created in my head when reading LOTR are
completely realistic. There is not a fantastic element there. Even the
strange and bizarre creatures and events are imagined by me in the
context of internally consistent realism.
As a consequence, the best artist to depict Middle-earth is John Howe.
He has consistently produced great, realistic images. The next on the
list (and this might shock some of the readers in this newsgroup) is
Ralph Bakshi. His depiction of Gollum, Sam and Frodo and the
environment of Middle-earth is as realistic as anyone's. This he pulled
off in the difficult context of creating an animated movie. My final
choice is Michael Kaluta. His Legolas Draws the Bow of Galadriel,
Theoden Espies the Serpent Banner, and Eowyn Before the Doors of
Meduseld are masterpieces of realistic, dynamic illustration. The only
reason I did not put him first is that he has painted a number of great
duds (e.g. Meriadoc the Magnificent and the Children of Samwise Handfast
and the cover portrait of Aragorn and Arwen on the 1994 calendar).
>
> As far as depictions of the actual, physical landscape of Middle Earth goes, I
> don't think anyone can surpasse Alan Lee's beautiful watercolors. They capture
> so well the intricate, woodsy, moist, green feel of the place that comes across
> in the books so well. I think JRRT himself would be loving Lee's work.
Alan Lee is a great watercolor painter who should be painting landscapes
or something. Watercolors are fundamentally unrealistic (except for
Winslow Homer) and should not be used to illustrate subcreated works.
It is just too difficult a painting medium. Even the best painters
cannot produce realistic facial expressions, textures and lighting.
Alan Lee is a great watercolor painter who does not recognize the
intrinsic limitations of the medium.
>
> As far as depictions of the characters go, this is where everybody's opinions
> are sure to differ widely.
I certainly agree here. I almost wish that no paintigs were ever done.
Now I mix in the illustrations with my own images. I have always felt
this contaminated my imagination and detracted from subcreation. I
guess it is too late now.
I myself think one of the single best LOTR paintings
> EVER is Michael Whelan's painting of Frodo and Sam on Orodruin in the aftermath
> of the destruction of the Ring, the earth and sky in turmoil, and Gandalf and
> the eagles can be seen in the heavens. Sam, looking skyward, cradling the
> exhausted Frodo, resigned to their fate there at the end of all things, is just
> marvelous.
I place this image in the "good" category. I like it because it is
dramatic and most Tolkien images look like they are carved in stone.
The great problem with it is that Sam and Frodo are far too robust.
They look far too well-fed for that point in the story. I expect that
the artist could not paint the figures otherwise. Most of the appeal of
the picture comes from the scene depicted rather than how the artist
depicted it. Compare this image to John Howe's portrait of Gandalf.
This is a simple image of Gandalf walking, yet all the strength of
purpose of Gandalf's mission in Middle-earth and the burden he carries
is conveyed in his stern gaze, resolute stride and the dramatic flow of
his cloak.
>
> I happen to love Michael Kaluta's LOTR work; I think it reflects some of the
> sensibilities of Arthur Rackham, an artist that Tolkien loved, and I think JRRT
> would have appreciated Kaluta's work.
I generally agree, as stated above. However, since Tolkien did not see
many of these images, it is hard to say what he would appreciate. He
was a great fan of Pauline Baynes but I do not recall any comments he
made about the work of anyone else.
Steven Hickman has also done some really
> good Tolkien pieces; the one gracing the cover of the 98 Tolkien calendar is my
> favorite of his.
Steven Hickman includes too much of the fantastic in his depictions of
Middle-earth. The Black Rider and Gaffer Gamgee image you refer to is a
good example of the this. I have no idea how a Black Rider could stay
on the horse in such a contorted position. The color pallette is
shifted toward the yellow, as if this would somehow convey late
evening. The figures have affected postures, common to the fantasy
illustration genre. The image appears fundamentally unrealistic and
this detracts from subcreation.
>
> The Brothers Hildebrandt are very well known for their Tolkien work, but as
> good as they are at putting down the paint (and they can REALLY paint), I don't
> think they really approached the material with the right sensibilities. Their
> stuff looks a little too posed and 'story-bookish'.
See affected postures, described above. You talk about "carved in
stone" and you have the Brothers in a nutshell. However, they have
produced some images that I like. The portrait of Beorn is the best
image they have made.
>
> Artists I would love to see do future Tolkien work: Charles Vess, Brian Froud
> (especially Tom Bombadil), James Gurney, Mark Zug, and, if I were allowed one
> miracle, I'd resurrect NC Wyeth to do a whole bunch of Tolkien paintings.
I think the reason NC Wyeth appeals to you is because of his realistic
depictions. The Boys King Arthur is a great book and has a number of
images that are similar to the images you would see in LOTR.
>
> The current covers of the ballantine paperback editions of the Hobbit & LOTR I
> would rank among the WORST Tolkien paintings of all time. What's up with that
> carrot nose that Gollum has? Uuuugggh. I can't look at those.
>
I have to agree. These must have been painted from models. Since
Gollum could not be modeled, he came out looking like a chicken. In
contrast, Ralph Bakshi's depiction of Gollum looks particularly good.
If you are interested in Tolkien calendars, I have created a general
index to them at the following site.
Mike Williams
Tolkien Collecting Resources:
http://www.voicenet.com/~jmike/jrrt/
ot...@pacbell.net
Didn't want to post this with my original comments; I had to double
check and make sure I had the name right!
Although I'm not very fond of the way he treats the characters, I
always find Ted Nasmith's paintings of Middle-Earth's landscapes to be
stunning. I find his creations to be very faithful to the text,
beautifully rendered, and exquisitely detailed. If they ever _do_ get
around to making a live-action film of LOTR (or The Hobbit, for that
matter), I would like nothing better than to see him contribute to the
set designs and any matte painting work. Favorite examples: "Minas
Tirith at Dawn," "Rivendell," and "Green Hill Country."
"The Man in Black"
TO REPLY.com
I've always liked Rodney Matthews drawing of Treebeard, as well as his
drawing of Rivendell. I'd really like to see what Roger Dean would do
LOTR...
Sydster
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