Talks with Tolkien artists: Snow-Monster

Hi! I'm a self-taught traditional artist from the American Rocky Mountains. I've developed a love of classical literature, an appreciation for early American history, a keen interest in film and movies, and a passion for ice hockey to name a few of my interests.

My work entertains an interest in discovering a sense of wonder through the natural world around us and the richness of the imagination.

My hope is to develop my artistic talents further and eventually become a storybook illustrator.

I was really into superheroes as a teen especially the Marvel characters shortly before the MCU movies were made. I found this Captain America redesign by DavidFernandezArt and was immediately hooked.

<da:thumb id="63069126"/>

As for my username, my first online account was made for a few hockey jersey concept sites which I frequented and submitted designs to. My favorite hockey team being the Colorado Avalanche, I used their first mascot, Howler the Yeti, as inspiration; a snow monster. At the time, I joined deviantart to primarily feature some hockey team logos I redesigned. It was only later that I decided to focus more on my sketches. I've pretty much stuck with the username ever since.

I first entered the world of Tolkien when I was eight years old. My mom gave me a copy of The Hobbit and I enjoyed the first few chapters, but it wasn't until I got to the Riddles in the Dark that I really got hooked on the world Middle-earth. Needless to say, once I finished the Hobbit I dove into the first copy of the Lord of the Rings that I could get my hands on. I received the Silmarillion for Christmas after that and have been collecting Tolkien's writings ever since, so it's safe to say that the impression was a lasting one.

That's right. I admit it was a challenge for me to read at the time, it may have been beyond my years, but I still found a good deal to appreciate. Even though I didn't fully comprehend the entire account I could recognize the truth and beauty conveyed by Tolkien in his writings. It has taken me several re-readings, but I have found so much to discover and think about in the Silmarillion largely, I believe, because it is relatively untouched by pop culture and modern media and therefore more open to the imagination. I still find the chapter the Lay of Beleriand difficult, but the tales of the war of the jewels are spectacular, somber, and genuinely inspiring. That's what I found mesmerizing as a boy.

My primary point of inspiration comes from the books. Tolkien was a master of language and his creativity, or sub-creativity in this case, is astonishingly rich, yet he leaves just enough room for the imagination of the reader to fill in the minute details. I read the books before Peter Jackson's films were released so I had already formed an idea of what Middle-earth looked like. The movies did provide a better sense of scale and the greater scope of Arda than what I originally imagined, so the movies lend some inspiration indirectly, but I tend to avoid any direct reference to the fine work that Weta workshop has done. I won't quite go so far as to say that I'm a purist, I do like many things about the movies and think they are a cinematic achievement, but there are a ton of things that they either changed or left out and not all were for the better. I do enjoy seeing what other artists come up with in depicting Tolkien's world, but they rarely inspire me in my own work. My vision of Middle-earth has changed over time. Not drastically, but each time I read one of Tolkien's books I pick up on details that I missed previously or had forgotten and, in a way, that's one of the great things about Middle-earth; there's always more to discover whether it's linguistic, historical, literary, or something else entirely.

Well, aside from the books I received as a kid, my wife and I have been giving Tolkien books to each other almost since we met. Between the two of us we have three copies of the Silmarillion (one of which is a first American edition), several copies of the Lord of the Rings, a couple of The Hobbit, The Children of Hurin, The Lay of Luthien, and most recently The Fall of Gondolin in addition to The Unfinished Tales, The Lost Road and Other Writings, The Book of Lost Tales 1 & 2, Tales from the Perilous Realm, The Lays of Beleriand, Tree and Leaf, Beowulf, Sigurd and Gudrun, The Fall of Arthur, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, The Letters of J.R.R.Tolkien, as well as The Tolkien Reader, a few commentaries, and companions. I haven't collected all volumes of the Histories of Middle-earth, but there lie a few opportunities for future birthday and Christmas gifts.

My favorite character is Samwise Gamgee. Tolkien considered his ''chief hero'' to be the one whose hope is unwavering, the one who sticks with it all even
though it is not his appointed mission, the one who carries on and endangers his own life to save Frodo. He preserves the hope that the Ring can be destroyed so that the world may be made new again.
In one letter Tolkien once wrote that, “The Sam Gamgee of my story is a most heroic character, now widely beloved by many readers,even though his origins are rustic.” He added to this thought in a separate correspondence to his publisher, Milton Waldman: “I think the simple “rustic” love of Sam and his Rosie (nowhere elaborated) is absolutely essential to the study of his (the chief hero’s)character, and to the theme of the relation of ordinary life (breathing, eating, working, begetting) and quests, sacrifice, causes, and the “longing for Elves”, and sheer beauty.” Sam shares a deep and inextricable connection to the common life. Everything about his existence that he holds dear is the very thing which the heroes defend and without which there can be no heroes. It is because Sam is in such close association with these simple and everyday things that his noble efforts raise him to the high standard as the chief hero of The Lord of the Rings.
Although Faramir is a pretty great guy too.

Finally, the acts heroism displayed in Tolkien's Middle-earth are undeniably worthy of immitation. Even if they are fictional characters one can only admire the leadership of Aragorn, the courage of Borimir, the persistence of Frodo, the loyalty of Sam and the honor of Faramir (just to name a few). All exhibit some form of skill coupled with self-sacrifice. Men who display extraordinary talent and bravery have sparked legends, myths, sagas, epics, faery stories, and romances for countless generations, but Tolkien rooted his heroes in aspects of the finest characters of antiquity and developed them even further by clearly illustrating that heroism comes not from one's own efforts, but by putting the well-being of others before one's own and that this act of selflessness is done so that a greater good may come into being.

Indirectly perhaps, but I believe the values presented in Tolkien's sub-creation reinforced the ethics that I was bright up through my parents. Once I grew up and reexamined those principles I found that not only were those morals still sound, but they complimented the writings of many classic philosophers as well as my own convictions.

I've been drawing ever since I can remember. I believe I starting drawing dinosaurs when I was a toddler (still do) and have kept up with it ever since.

In my early teens I started to refine my approach and was drawn to some comic book art. I enjoyed seeing so many different approaches in depicting the same character. Captain America and Batman could be interpreted in a plethora of styles and I started to mimic select aspects in my own work. Comic book artists Jim Lee, Brian Hitch, and especially AdamHughes influenced me the most.

However I've also found inspiration outside the superhero world in Michaelangelo, William Adolph Bouguereau, and Arthur Rackam from the classical side. Being a Tolkien fan, it's near impossible not to like the peices by Alan Lee and John Howe. I don't always love their interpretation of Middle-earth and it's inhabitants, but I do like their techniques and artistic approaches. Finally, Drew Struzan is also a favorite of mine especially with his movie posters.

All of these artists have a sort of stylized realism in their art and that has greatly influenced my own work in some form or another.

Once I have the image in my mind, I sketch a few thumbnails to try out different angles and placements. Then I try to decide what medium fits the scene: graphite, ink, colored pencils, markers, watercolors, sepia tones, black and white...etc. Usually the more colorful the picture, the more cheerful the scene and vice versa, but not always. Then I try to figure out the values and contrast and then get down to work with an underlying pencil sketch and work over that. Finally I'll scan the peice and touch it up with a photo editor program just to bring out the highlights and color.

That's a little harder to explain.Tolkien's work is so descriptive that I could probably draw something from every page of his books (and almost certainly would if I had the time), but some visuals come more readily than others. In a way the artwork allows me to convey what I see or feel in a manner that can  be recognized by others. I suppose I try to depict something that is striking through power or beauty or something that triggers an emotional response. The same pretty much goes for non Tolkien related work as well.

There are a number of advantages to any technique. Ink is sharp and precise, markers are faster and cover more surface area, and paint looks more professional. However, I still prefer old fashioned pencil. Traditional techniques are what I'm familiar with, but there are many more that I haven't tried yet, acrillic for example. One day though, I would like to make the jump to digital in Photoshop and Illustrator.

I've always found that I've improved by watching how other artists do their work. Different techniques, styles, and approaches have helped me immensely. Lots of experimenting too.

It was a wedding present to my wife a few months ago and was certainly the largest and most intricate artistic endeavor I have undertaken. I chose The Houses of Healing since it is one of her favorite chapters in the Lord of the Rings. While it's not perfect, she was very happy with it, so I'm satisfied.

I suppose this qualifies as my favorite picture from another "fandom."

 

One of my earlier works, it is taken from a scene in Homer's Illiad. This scene stood out to me, during my first reading of the Greek epic, as one of the most touching chapters as the warrior prince Hector bids his wife and son farewell before his death. Although I'm pretty pleased with this painting from the Legend of Sleepy Hollow too.

This one is probably the closest.

 

Aside from the Houses of Healing piece, Watching Over the Shire proved to be the most challenging.
At the time, I was pretty new to watercolors so this took some trial and error to get close to what I envisioned. It was fun to become more proficient in painting, but it took a lot of work.