Tolkien, the Artist

[Aiwendil]

I find many of the images from the "Visions, Myths, and Legends" chapter quite fascinating. There are, on the one hand, pictures of the sort you'd expect: scenes and places associated with Tolkien's mythology. But I was surprised by some of the pictures that bear no apparent relation to his literary work. I would certainly love to have a copy of The Book of Ishness.

I wonder whether anyone has any thoughts on the pair "Before" and "Afterwards". Hammond and Scull speculate that in moving from the first image to the second we have gone through a door to find a figure on a torchlit path; they suggest that this represents "the entrance to Death" and "the soul travelling on its way". This seems a reasonable interpretation, but there is little in either picture to suggest it particularly. If it were not for the titles, the pictures would have no obvious connection aside from a similarity in style - and yet the titles suggest not only a connection but a specific program. In any case, I think that "Before", as simple as it is, is one of the most evocative pictures Tolkien drew.

"Undertenishness" and "Grownupishness" appear to form another pair. Both surprised me when I first saw them: "Undertenishness" for its trick of being both a forest and a butterfly and "Grownupishness" for its cartoonish style.

Tolkien makes interesting use of watercolours in some of the other images from this chapter. In "Water, Wind, & Sand", "Tanaqui", and "The Shores of Faery" he presents highly stylized images from his mythology. The flat, sectional approach he uses is rather effective, I think. "Water, Wind, & Sand" in particular evokes the same feeling as the poem with which it is associated.

In some ways, I can't help but think, these early pictures are similar to his early writing (mainly the Book of Lost Tales); they are at once more primitive, more varied, and more experimental than his later work.

[Estelyn Telcontar]

Originally Posted by Aiwendil

In some ways, I can't help but think, these early pictures are similar to his early writing (mainly the Book of Lost Tales); they are at once more primitive, more varied, and more experimental than his later work.

That's an interesting statement, Aiwendil - I remember thinking that Tolkien's writing was in some ways more powerful in The Book of Lost Tales than in his later works. I do agree that he was more experimental in these early artworks, though I do not like all the styles he tried out - and neither did he, apparently!

"Before" and "Afterwards" do not feel connected to me, nor do they appeal to me particularly. I wish "Beyond" (#39) were printed in color, as I like the abstract use of Tolkien's typical motives - mountains, trees, and a road, leading from the foreground to the background. I prefer "Tanaqui" to "Water, Wind & Sand" and find it interesting to see the development of the series of pictures on that theme. I find "The Shores of Faery" (#44) very appealing, framed as it is by the stylized trees - very much Art Nouveau. I like the landscape on "Glorund Sets Forth to Seek Túrin" (#47), but for some reason the dragon spoils it for me.

"Halls of Manwë" (#52), which is also the title picture of the book, is definitely my favorite in this chapter; though I find the swan ship not quite convincing, the mountains are wonderfully painted. I feel similarly about "Taur-na-Fúin/Fangorn Forest" (#54) - I love JRRT's forest pictures, but much prefer the textures of the trees to the tiny Elves.

Probably my least favourite picture in this chapter is the last one, "The Tree of Amalion" (#62) - it seems too flat, too artificial to me.

I enjoy reading the explanations and interpretations of the pictures by Hammond and Scull; they're helpful and informative. However, I respond to the drawings and paintings emotionally (or not), so what I have to say about them is very much my personal impression.