Customer Reviews

Last Ship Home

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The first time I was introduced to the art of Rodney Matthew's was in 1994 with the book, "Last Ship Home". It didn't take long for me to rush and pick up "In Search of Forever", "Countdown to Millennium", his portfolio collections and a host of other books featuring him!

What becomes apparent upon "feasting" our eyes on his captivating illustrations is the creative genius behind them. The surreal and fantasy-like nuances that he infuses the most mundane objects with transport us into a magical realm. Here, common animals are inspiration for exotic beasts (a 4 winged eagle, a 4 eyed elephant or even a saxophone toting grasshopper!) and classic fantasy novel settings ("Alice in Wonderland", "Middle Earth" or "Camelot") are imbued with epic breathtaking qualities that invite you to go on an adventure as you flip through the pages. His employment of color is superb and the level of intricacy is simply mind boggling.

Rodney Matthews has done for the art world what Peter Packson's "Lord of The Rings" did for Hollywood; to bring the fantasy genre into the forefront of people's minds, young and adult alike. He, along with a select few panel of artists (Patrick Woodroffe, Boris Vallejo, etc.) form the core of the movement to bring the psychadellic inspirations of the 70's into the 21st century's mainstream creative consciousness.

If you are someone who likes all things fantasy-related, this book is definitely a keeper. When I feel bored and uninspired, I just have to open one of his books and feel immediately transported away into another world! My wish is for him to collaborate with J.K. Rowling for the Harry Potter series sometime in the near future; that would be the day!

I bought this book a long time ago. I have yet to tire from it. Rodney Matthews is one of the best Fantasy artists around, and has also done work for musicians as well as magazenes and books. The work this book hold vary from people like Sir Arthur Conan Doile, H.G. Wells, J.R.R. Tolken, and many many more. It's too bad it's out of print, or I would recomend it to anyone vaguly intrested in Fantasy art.