Art of The Lord of the Rings

Brittany Thrun

3,920 words

Copyright Brittany Thrun? December 11, 2008, at 11:34 AM

The Lord of the Rings trilogy has inspired countless works of art from the beautiful and lyrical descriptions given by J. R. R. Tolkien. His fluid and detailed prose give very specific images that artists bring to life visually with their pencils and brushes. Two of the most well known Tolkien artists are John Howe and Alan Lee. Both artists have been depicting scenes from the trilogy for decades. Their artwork, when closely looked at, are very similar to Tolkien’s imagery. Though some creative license and broad interpretation are taken in some works, through the analysis of artwork by both Lee and Howe, one can compare the accuracy of both of the artists’ works to the original descriptions by Tolkien.

Howe and Lee’s biggest project was The Lord of the Rings films. Director Peter Jackson was familiar with their work and requested their talent. The movies in themselves produced countless numbers of artwork for both the settings as well as creatures. Both John Howe and Alan Lee were chief conceptual artists on the project. They rendered sketches and artwork for the films, producing what is possibly their best work. Within the six years they spent in New Zealand they shared an office, which allowed them to test ideas as well as inspire each other. (Howe)

It is interesting to take a look on how close the artwork depicts the scenes so masterfully described by Tolkien. Some descriptions are incredibly specific while others leave room for interpretation. Both of the artists as well as Peter Jackson are firm Tolkien fans and their goal was to be as true to the book as possible. They aimed to create a world that looked like it had been there for centuries; since the beginning of time. They wanted a world seeped in culture and ancient history; something that hints that there is so much more. Tolkien wrote his novels as if the history of Middle Earth was known by all. It was a history that goes back to the beginning of its creation.

In an interview in November 2005, Alan Lee explains that the amount of detail in the movies would “lend weight to the idea that this is an ancient land, full of the remains of ancient cultures (Lee).” He also states, “I quite like the fact that we spent quite a bit of time designing things that you barely see. You just catch a glimpse of it, rather than have it being in center frame, to milk it for all it’s worth. Having those details in the background helps to create the idea that we are in this very rich world and it makes it more believable (Lee).”

Alan Lee, born in Middlesex, England in 1947, attended the Ealing School of Art in London (Windling). During his years there, he concentrated on the depiction of Celtic and Norse myths. He was first introduced to (“The Lord of the Rings”) trilogy at the age of seventeen. Lee comments on his first exposure to the books:

“I was around 17 years old and just about ready for Tolkien. I had read quite a lot of mythology and folklore as I was growing up, and a friend of mine was reading the trilogy. He said they were wonderful books, and as he finished each volume he passed it on to me. I totally lapped it up and lived in the world of Middle-earth for a few months while I was reading them. It was quite wonderful. I spent quite a lot of time by myself growing up, and from my early childhood, I had always drawn. It was an extension of my playing with toy soldiers or building castles. I would also do a lot of daydreaming, because I didn’t get out a lot (Lee).”

This early introduction to the trilogy as well as other mythology and folklore allowed Lee to understand the culture and era Tolkien was drawing upon.

John Howe was born in Vancouver, Canada in 1957 and attended college in Strasbourg, France. The following year, he studied at the Ecoles des Arts Décoratifs de Strasbourg where he took a liking to illustration (Howe). He has illustrated numerous additions of (“The Lord of the Rings Trilogy”) as well as having work included in Tolkien Calendars. (Howe) He comments on his first reading of the trilogy:

“I read The Lord of the Rings when I was around twelve, and – this is a story I’ve told a million times – read volume two first, then three and finally volume one last. I was obliged to get them from the local library, and The Fellowship of the Ring was ALWAYS out. I’m sure people would borrow it, keep it a month, get bogged down and give up and eventually return it to the library. (The Two Towers and The Return of the King rarely left the shelves, this was before “The Lord of the Rings” gained the incredible popularity it now enjoys – and deserves.) I had to bide my time for months, and eventually got tired of waiting and read the trilogy backwards.” (Howe)

Howe’s dedication to reading the entire trilogy shows his passion for Tolkien’s work. He has made this passion his life work and is what contributes to his familiarity with the work seen in many of his artwork.

Both artists focus on different aspects in their depictions of J.R.R. Tolkien’s works. John Howe’s work consists mostly of the creatures and the dark side of Middle Earth filled with orcs and eerie places like Isenguard. Alan Lee, on the other hand, tends to focus on the idyllic and beautiful such as the Elven cities and the Halls of Rohan. Alan Lee reflects,” I think I do it quite intuitively. I do respond when I’m reading something. I get quite a strong - not a detailed picture - but quite a strong sense of atmosphere (Lee),” in response to his successfulness in bringing Tolkien’s scenes to life. He also comments on John Howe’s work:

“His love and respect for Tolkien’s world is apparent through the imaginative power of his illustrations and the integrity he brings to all aspects of his design work. Large tracts of Middle-earth are brooded over by John’s awe-inspiring structures (Lee).”

Throughout the trilogy, Tolkien spent much time creating Middle Earth and paid close detail to the settings. The places in The Lord of the Rings are beautifully described for the reader. Many of Tolkien’s most beloved locations take up multiple pages of description. Several examples can be evaluated to exemplify the most predominate settings as well as their relation to the fantastic artwork of John Howe and Alan Lee.

The Shire and Bag End are very similar to the English country side. John Howe, having never traveled to Britain, tends to draw a very ideal and idyllic depiction when drawing the Shire. Alan Lee, as a native to Great Britain, is very much familiar with the landscape and thus focuses on such. Howe on the other hand, is known for his illustrations of the Hobbit holes, particularly Bag End.

In The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Tolkien does not fully describe Bag End, leaving much to the readers own discretion. It is in the Hobbit where Bilbo’s abode is thoroughly described. It is there where John Howe took direction for his depictions of Bag End.

“It had a perfectly round door like a porthole, painted green, with a shiny yellow brass knob in the exact middle. The door opened on to a tube-shaped hall like a tunnel: a very comfortable tunnel without smoke, with paneled walls, and floors tiled and carpeted, provided with polished chairs, and lots and lots of pegs for hats and coats-the hobbit was fond of visitors (Tolkien).”

John Howe described the process he went through while illustrating this drawing:

“I dutifully hauled out my copy of the Hobbit, with Professor Tolkien’s rendering of the front hall, and started sketching. I also own Switzerland’s largest collection of books (five) on Norwegian medieval churches, and these were my principal inspiration. Some of the furniture is from our house, (and the seat on the left would be if only I could afford it) and the rest fell into place quite spontaneously (Howe).”

In the illustration Howe is very true to Tolkien’s description. There is the green door accompanied by the brass doorknob in the center along with, the multitude of pegs with many coats hung upon them. The front hall is tube shaped like a tunnel and the floors tiled and carpeted. One detail not specified by Tolkien was the amount of paneling on the ceiling. Howe opted for wood panels halfway up and eaves on the ceiling of the Hobbit foyer. This decision follows the style of Norwegian churches that Howe consulted. The style is also very reminiscent of English cottages in the Tudor style.

Tolkien not only extended himself as a writer, but as an artist as well. One of the places that Tolkien himself did artwork for was Moria. In “The Fellowship of the Ring”, many editions include his drawing of the secret entrance into the dwarven fortress. Tolkien writes:

“The Moon now shone upon the grey face of the rock; but they could see nothing else for a while. Then slowly on the surface, where the wizard’s hands had passed, faint lines appeared, like slender veins of silver running in the stone. At first they were no more than pale gossamer-threads, so fine that they only twinkled fitfully where the Moon caught them, but steadily they grew broader and clearer, until their design could be guessed.
At the top, as high as Gandalf could reach, was an arch of interlacing letters in an Elvish character. Below, though the threads were in places blurred or broken, the outline could be seen of an anvil and a hammer surmounted by a crown with seven stars. Beneath these again were two trees, each bearing crescent moons. More clearly than all else there shone forth in the middle of the door a single star with many rays (II/IV).”

Tolkien: Moria Door -(Lloyd) http://www.darkstar1.co.uk/ring.

John Howe illustrates this door almost exactly like Tolkien. Howe inserts Tolkien’s design into the atmosphere and surroundings that it is located in the novel.


John Howe: Moria Entrance -(Lord of the Rings art) http://www.lordotrings.com/artmedia/art.asp

Once inside, the Fellowship explores the grand stronghold of the Dwarves:

“Great shadows sprang up and fled, and for a second they saw a vast roof far above their heads upheld by many mighty pillars hewn of stone. Before them and on either side stretched a huge empty hall; its black walls, polished and smooth as glass, flashed and glittered. Three other entrances they saw, dark black arches: one straight before them eastwards, and one on either side (II/IV).”
“High up above the eastern archway through a shaft near the roof came a long pale gleam; and across the hall through the northern arch light also glimmered faint and distantly (II/IV).”

Alan Lee does a large painting representing the towering pillars of the great hall. The piece is uses dark hues that adds to the atmosphere described by Tolkien. The ray of light runs through the middle of the work informing the viewer that this portrays the morning after the Fellowship’s first night inside Moria.

Lothlorien artwork is common in the drawings and paintings of Alan Lee which the majority of which were concepts in the film. Lee’s depictions have a fluidity and heavenly quality that Tolkien describes. However, the actual imagery is exceptionally brief giving Lee quite an amount of artistic freedom which is illustrated by the following passage:

“They had gone little more than a mile into the forest when they came upon another stream flowing down swiftly from the tree-clad slopes that climbed back westward towards to mountains. They heard it splashing over a fall away among the shadows on their right. Its dark hurrying waters ran across the path before them, and joined the Silverlode in a swirl of dim pools among the roots of trees (II/VII).”

Alan Lee: Lothlorien -(The Fellowship of the Ring)

Lee creates the flowing and shadowy woods of Mirkwood well. There is an eerie and mystical feeling in the colors and fogginess of the drawings. The trees are drawn with great strength as they reach far into the sky. The wood is very different than the Ents domain as well as Rivendell. Tolkien gave each of the woods a unique feeling and look which is successfully done in the illustrations and paintings of Alan Lee.

When the Fellowship finally reaches the city they encounter no one at ground level:

“They were in a deep lane between the ends of the wall, and passing quickly through it they entered the City if the Trees. No folk could they see, nor hear any feet upon the paths; but there were many voices, about them, and in the air above (II/VII).”
“As he climbed slowly up Frodo passed many flets: some on one side, some on the other, and some set about the bough of the tree, so that a ladder passed through them. At a great height above the ground he came to a talan, like the deck of a great ship. On it was built a house, so large that almost it would have served for a hall of Men upon earth (II/VII).”

Alan Lee: Lothlorien -(The Fellowship of the Ring)

Alan Lee clearly creates a city among the trees. The structures upon the branches of the enormous trees are slightly representative of budding flowers with the peaked roofs and wispy architecture.

During the stay at Lothlorien, Frodo and Sam are taken to Galadriel’s Glade:

“Turning aside, she led them toward the Southern slopes of the hill of Caras Galadhon, and passing through a high green hedge they came into an enclosed garden. No trees grew there, and it lay open to the sky. The evening star had risen and was shining with white fire above the western woods. Down a long flight of steps the Lady went into the deep green hollow, through which ran murmuring the silver stream that issued from the fountain on the hill. At the bottom, upon a low pedestal carved like a branching tree, stood a basin of silver, wide and shallow, and beside it stood a silver ewer (II/VII).”

Alan Lee’s painting includes the stream, the flight of steps and the organic basin. The sloping background creates a feeling of enclosure that is spoken of by Tolkien as the stream gently meanders down the hill. The basin, though topped with what maybe marble, has a very natural base that clearly depicts the branching tree motif from the book.

Rohan and its Golden Hall were beautifully depicted by Tolkien. This race of men was near and dear to his heart and he depicted them as a race of Anglo-Saxons, masters in the rearing and riding of horses. There were plenty of details and images for both artists to work with, particularly Alan Lee. His sketches illustrate the Golden Hall on top a hill with its thatched roof glowing in the sunlight:

“A dike and mighty wall and thorny fence encircle it. Within there rise the roofs of houses; and in the mist, set upon a green terrace, there stands aloft a great hall of Men. And it seems to my eyes that it is thatched with gold. The light of it shines far over the land. Golden, too, are the posts of its doors (III/VI).”

Alan Lee: Rohan -(The Two Towers)

Though Tolkien did not specifically say that it was a roof of hay, Alan Lee drew from the history and ways of the Anglo-Saxons whom this race was said to depict. Such Anglo influences continue in Tolkien’s images of the Golden Hall interior:

“The guards now lifted the heavy bars of the doors and swung them slowly inwards grumbling on their great hinges. The travelers entered. Inside it seemed dark and warm after the clear air upon the hill. The hall was long and wide and filled with shadows and half lights; mighty pillars upheld its lofty roof. But here and there bright sunbeams fell in glimmering shafts from the eastern windows, high under the deep eaves. Through the louver in the roof, above the thin wisps of issuing smoke, the sky showed pale and blue. As their eyes changed, the travelers perceived that the floor was paved with stones of many hues; branching runes and strange devices intertwined beneath their feet. They saw now that the pillars were richly carved, gleaming dully with gold and half-seen colours. Many woven cloths were hung upon the walls, and over their wide spaces marched figures of ancient legend, some dim with years, some darkling in the shade. But upon one form the sunlight fell; a young man upon a white horse. He was blowing a great horn, and his yellow hair was flying in the wind. The horse’s head was lifted, and its nostrils were wide and red as it neighed, smelling battle afar. Foaming water, green and white, rushed and curled about its knees (III/VI).”

The colors, the lines were beautifully drawn by Lee for the films. In the films the hall is dark; the floor made of different color stones; the pillars richly carved with its leaf of soft gold and muted but rich colors; the tapestries on the wall are rich of scenes from their past.

Helm’s Deep is the location for one of the major battle scenes of the novel. Tolkien creates a large fortification nested in a natural valley of rock in his descriptions:

“Men of that land called it Helm’s Deep, after a hero of old wars who had made his refuge there. Ever steeper and narrower it wound inward from the north under the shadow of the Thrihyrne, till the crowhaunted cliffs rose like mighty towers on either side, shutting out the light (III/VII).”

Tolkien continues:

“At Helm’s Gate, before the mouth of the Deep, there was a heel of rock thrust outward by the northern cliff. There upon its spur stood high walls of ancient stone, and within them was a lofty tower. Men said that in the far-off days of the glory of Gondor the sea-kings had built here this fastness with the hands of giants. The Hornburg it was called, for a trumpet sounded upon the tower echoed in the Deep behind, as if armies long-forgotten were issuing to war from caves beneath the hills. A wall, too, the men of old had made from the Hornburg to the southern cliff, barring the entrance to the gorge. Beneath it by a wide culvert the Deeping-stream passed out (III/VII).”

Alan Lee: Helm’s Deep -(The Two Towers)

John Howe: Helm’s Deep -(Howe) http://www.john-howe.com/portfolio/gallery

The actual structure of Helm’s Deep can possibly be visualized multiple ways. The layout and style of architecture is not specified. Being a fortress of Rohan, John Howe and Alan Lee rendered the fortress with a style that would coincide with the Anglo-Saxon style that is issued to Rohan in the films and over works by the artists.

One of the largest fortresses in the entire trilogy is the “White City”, Minas Tirith. The fields in front of this giant city of stone are the site of the largest battle in the trilogy. Tolkien pays special attention to this location and mentions it in great detail:

“And there where the White Mountains of Ered Mimrais came to their end he saw, as Gandalf had promised, the dark mass of Mount Mindolluim, the deep purple shadows of its high glens, and its tall face whitening in the rising day. And upon its out-thrust knee was the Guarded City, with its seven walls of stone so strong and old that it seemed to have been not built but carven by giants out of the bones of the earth (V/I).”
“For the fashions of Minas Tirith was such that it was built on seven levels, each delved into the hill, and about each was set a wall, and in each wall was a gate. But the gates were not set in a line…(V/I).”
“For partly in the primeval shaping of the hill, partly by the mighty craft and labour of old, there stood up from the rear of the wide court behind the Gate a towering bastion of stone, its edge sharp as a ship-keel facing the east. Up it rose, even to the level of the topmost circle, and there was crowned by the battlement; so that those in the Citadel might, like mariners in a mountainous ship, look from its peak sheer down upon the Gate seven hundred feet below. The entrance to the Citadel also looked eastward, but was delved in the heart of the rock; thence a long lamp-lit slope ran up to the seventh gate (V/I).”

One illustration by John Howe of Minas Tirith is very different from the description in the book. He admits this fact and did not know why he didn’t consult the book. His idea of Minas Tirith changed particularly while he was working on the films. He writes:

“Whatever was I thinking when I painted this picture? Must’ve forgotten to read the book or something, as it really bears little resemblance to Minas Tirith as described in the Return of the King. Admittedly, there are concentric walls, but the rest is a pretty…let’s say liberal…interpretation (Howe).”

John Howe: Minas Tirith -(Howe) http://www.john-howe.com/portfolio/gallery

John Howe: Minas Tirith -(Howe) http://www.john-howe.com/portfolio/gallery

The seven levels of the city are not fully defined and the jut of rock is rather disconnected from the city. Its mass is rather small and does not give the feeling of massiveness that Tolkien writes of. His other illustration however, includes a large mass of rock which is at such an angle that only the citadel is shown.

Alan Lee’s painting of the enormous city of white is neatly organized into seven layers which are clearly divided in the center by the protruding rock. Alan Lee describes his process:

“Minas Tirith bit for me because it was a kind of a journey of exploration. I started visualizing it from ground level, almost, kind of entering the gate and making my way up the streets just kind of imagining myself at the end of that particular drawing and looking up at another street and drawing that. Just kind of improvising really, but all the while just sort of improvising, really, with the idea that the architecture will kind of crystallize and get clearer in my mind as I make that trip (Lee).”

The places explored in The Lord of the Rings are vivid and described in great detail by J. R. R. Tolkien. This magnificent author further drew readers into the world of Middle Earth with his beautiful and detailed images. Artists like John Howe and Alan Lee had incredible inspiration and imagery to work from as well as some places that allowed for artist interpretation. Tolkien wrote the books hoping to create a culture and folklore for Britain. He was not at all opposed to the creation of artwork and music inspired by the trilogy. He would almost certainly approve of the depictions rendered by Howe and Lee who were rather successful in creating visualizations based on the epic trilogy, The Lord of the Rings.

Works Cited

Howe, John. “Interview with John Howe in Saint-Ursanne, Switzerland.” Interview. Tolkien Library. 09 July 2007. 12 Nov. 2008 <http://www.tolkienlibrary.com/press/john_howe_interview.php>.
Howe, John. “John Howe: Illustrator [Portfolio].” John Howe: Illustrator. 2002. 10 Oct. 2008 <http://www.john-howe.com/portfolio/gallery/>.
Joint, Laura. “Lord of the Drawings.” BBC Devon. 24 Jan. 2006.BBC.22 Nov. 2008.
Lee, Alan. “Quint interviews artist Alan Lee about his LORD OF THE RINGS SKETCHBOOK.” Interview. Ain’t It Cool News. 7 Nov. 2005. 15 Nov. 2008 <http://www.aintitcool.com/?q=node/21766>.
Lee, Alan. “Supernal Dreams: Tolkien artist Alan Lee on designing middle-earth for “Lord of the Rings”.” Interview. Cinefantastique. 21 Mar. 2008. 15 Nov. 2008 <http://cinefantastiqueonline.com/2008/03/21/supernal-dreams-tolkien-artist-alan-lee-on-designing-middle-earth-for-the-lord-of-the-rings/>.
Lloyd, Andy. “The Lord of the Rings Symbolism.” Dark Star. Aug. 2002. 22 Nov. 2008 <http://www.darkstar1.co.uk/ring.html>.
“Lord of the Rings Art.” Lord of the Rings: Fanatics Site. 2001. 10 Oct. 2008 <http://www.lordotrings.com/artmedia/art.asp>.
The Fellowship of the Ring. Dir. Peter Jackson. Perf. Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Viggo Mortensen. DVD. New Line Home Entertainment, 2001.
The Two Towers. Dir. Peter Jackson. Perf. Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Viggo Mortensen. DVD. New Line Home Entertainment, 2002.
The Return of the King. Dir. Peter Jackson. Perf. Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Viggo Mortensen. DVD. New Line Home Entertainment, 2003.
“Tolkien art by Alan Lee.” 22 Nov. 2008 <http://www.eldar.org/artgallery/tolkien/alee/justpixs.html>.
Tolkien, J.R. R. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. New York, NY: Del Rey Books, 1994.
Tolkien, J.R. R. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. New York, NY: Del Rey Books, 1994.
Tolkien, J.R. R. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. New York, NY: Del Rey Books, 1994.
Tolkien, J. R. “The Hobbit : The Enchanting Prelude to the Lord of the Rings.” Westminster: Del Rey, 1986.
Windling, Terri. “Pathways Through Enchanted Lands: The Art of Alan Lee.” JoMa Archives: Other Arts. 2002. JoMa. 10 Oct. 2008 <http://www.endicott-studio.com/gal/galalan.html>


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