creepy ME illustrations

[Melilot Brandybuck]

Is it just me, or does anyone else find those illustrations on this site's homepage a little creepy? The one today of Pippin and Merry is a case in point. Also the one of Sam. In that illustration, there are two characters, one considerably larger than the other. The larger one, who reminds me of that sick horror villain Chucky, appears to be talking to the smaller one. Which one is Sam? In my mind I don't imagine any of the characters to look like they do in some of these illustrations. I don't want the good guys to look creepy. The only one that seems to look consistently the same in every illustration or movie is Gandalf.

Who do you think does the best ME illustrations and can anyone recommend a book of them?

[Estelyn Telcontar]

I know there are websites with the well-known illustrations of John Howe, Alan Lee, and Ted Nasmith, to name a few of the best artists, though I don't have the links at hand. I'm sure they can be found by googling. One of my personal favorites is Anke Eissmann, a young German artist whom I met in Birmingham last summer. She does fantastic illustrations, which can be seen at her website (http://anke.edoras-art.de/anke_home.html). Enjoy!

The reason the illustrations on the Barrow-Downs' main site are not the most familiar and popular ones is because copyright is an issue, along with linking possibilities. Many of those pictures are fan art.

[The Saucepan Man]

There is a nice thread on Middle-earth illustrators and illustrations here:

How Do You Envision Middle-Earth? (http://forum.barrowdowns.com/showthread.php?t=3701&page=1)