Tolkien's World: Paintings of Middle-Earth [Paperback]

J. R. R. Tolkien (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1995

Middle-earth, the world created by J.R.R. Tolkien in "The Hobbit", "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Silmarillion", has been an inspiration for generations of artists. This book includes paintings by artists from all over the world, both famous and unknown, including Alan Lee, John Howe, Ted Nasmith, Inger Edelfeldt, Michael Hague and Roger Garland. Each of the pictures is accompanied by a page of text from the relevant passage in Tolkien's fiction.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The fantastical world of J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth is a land of rugged valleys and strange gothic forests inhabited by wizards and goblins. This world comes to life within the vast vaults of our imagination--and it may unnerve devotees of The Hobbit, Silmarillion, and The Lord of the Rings to physically encounter this world in paint and paper. Can the full evilness of Smaug, that demon of jaws and fire, ever be reproduced in a picture? Thankfully and reassuringly, Tolkien's World does not denigrate our very personal conceptions of this place in any way. An array of talented artists conjure up brilliant images on canvas, inspired by specific passages from the texts. Alan Lee's style is whimsical and enticing--his landscapes of Mount Doom and Tol Brandir are enveloped in a foggy veil, the elf lady Galadriel glows in an strange light standing "tall and pale." In contrast, John Howe's works are bold and dramatic, reflecting terrifying encounters with trolls, dragons, and creatures of "sting and of claws." These and other fabled paintings only add to our dreams of Middle-earth. --Naomi Gesinger --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Harpercollins (November 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0261103075
• ISBN-13: 978-0261103078
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 8.7 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,552,834 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

J.R.R. Tolkien (1892.1973), beloved throughout the world as the creator of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, was a professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford, a fellow of Pembroke College, and a fellow of Merton College until his retirement in 1959. His chief interest was the linguistic aspects of the early English written tradition, but even as he studied these classics he was creating a set of his own.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

100 of 101 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Howe's excellent, the rest are good, May 16, 2000

By 

Mike London "MAC" (Oxford, UK) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Tolkien's World : Paintings of Middle-Earth (Hardcover)

There are 60 illustrations, excellent paintings, with the accompanying text that inspired it. The colours are very well down, and each painting is brilliantly done in terms of publication. There are nine artists represented. These are:

Inger Edelfeldt: 7 paintings

Tony Galuidi: 2 paintings

Roger Garland: 10 paintings

Robert Goldsmith: 2 paintings

Michael Hague: 7 paintings

John Howe:10 paintings

Alan Lee: 10 paintings

Ted Nasmith: 10 paintings

Caro Emery Phenix: 2 paintings

My personal favorite is John Howe. He brings out a lot of dark imagery. I don't know why, but Hague's stuff just does not appeal to me. I have seen him do Lewis's Pilgrim's Regress, and some other stuff, and I just don't like his style (also saw his illustrations for WIZARD OF OX). His are of THE HOBBIT. Galuidi has almost a computer generated quality, and his work is especially intriguing, although there are only 2 of his paintings in this collection. Lee is good. All in all, this is a fair book, collecting the paintings of artisits brining about their own vision of Tolkien's classic saga. Over all, a four star book (bumped up one star because of Howe's supreme quality).

21 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very good, May 13, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Tolkien's World : Paintings of Middle-Earth (Hardcover)

"Tolkien's World" is a very handsome book: large, hardcover, sleeve-cover, fine print and paper. It consists on a serie of paintings divided by books (The Hobbit, LOTR, Silmarillion, etc.) printed in the largest scale possible and with great definition. Beside the picture there is the passage of the book which inspired the painting. In the end there are one-page texts about or written by each of the artists, explaining their influences and relation with Tolkien works. My favorite artist is, without a doubt, Ted Nasmith, that draws very realistic pictures. Second place is John Howe, with his dark and intriguin style. All in all, a pretty nice book. I was very satisfied with it and it helped me to figure the places and events of LOTR. Be aware that there's a book that is kind of a sequel to this one: "Realms of Tolkien: Images of Middle-Earth", which I'm planning to get. It is written on its purchasing info that the author is Ted Nasmith, so is the cover authory. Lucky me.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A difference in interpretations, February 3, 2001

By 

Kathleen M Murphy (Monroeville, OH United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tolkien's World : Paintings of Middle-Earth (Hardcover)

I enjoyed this book greatly. However, some people may have been dissapointed in that the paintings may not have coincided with the world they pictured in their imagination. Tolkien's masterful use of the English language and powerful descriptions are done justice in many of these paintings. I find that anyone who has read Tolkien's works forms a very distinct picture in their mind. Even though I may not have visualized some of the scenes and landscapes as they have been portrayed, I found seeing other's interpretations to be an interesting experience. I personaly enjoyed the paintings by John Howe, Ted Nasmith, and Alan Lee.