Etching 8×10 inches
Glamdring, Gandalfs great Elfen sword, and Anglachel, later known as Gurthang wielded by both Beleg and Turin Turambar, played very important rules in their respective stories, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion/ The Children of Turin, by J.R.R.Tolkien. Glaurung the greatest of the fire breathing dragons was slain by Gurthang, and Glamdring, found in the Trolls stash, in The Hobbit, was Gandalfs weapon, along with his staff throughout the decisive moments in the war of the Ring, including his epic battle with the Balrog, in the caverns of Khazad-dum.
Swords hold a fascination for me despite their horrible function of killing people. They are sexy, beautiful, phallic, and irresistible to a sculptor. I hope to capture more of them that are now in my imagination.
Etching 8×10 inches
This image of Sauron in the top of Barad-dur in the land of Mordor, perhaps as Frodo and Sam saw it when they where on the plane of Gorgoroth, from The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R.Tolkien, is my latest etching. This piece has elements that have been around in sketches going back more than 30 years. The spiral sort of lattice work of the windows, and the cloud-like image of the not yet coalesced Sauron date from the seventies, and the shape of the top of the tower from years later, maybe the eighties? (I’ve been playing around with this stuff for a long time)
I feel that this piece fairly successfully express my image of Barad-dur in that it captures what to me was the most dominant element of Tolkien’s description, its BLACKNESS. The extraordinarily powerful description of it from The Fellowship (which I actually memorized) goes, “…wall upon wall, battlement upon battlement, black, immeasurable strong, mountain of iron, gate of steel, tower of adamant…”. And also it works in that it gives an almost palpable sense of malevolence.
Pen on Reeves BFK
19 x 24 inches
My latest drawing in my series based on the Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, and other works by J.R.R.Tolkien “The Shadow of the Past”, depicts the moment when Frodo having just been told by Gandalf the truth about Bilbo’s ring, begins to realize the magnitude of the danger that he and everyone in hobbiton are in. I have always enjoyed Tolkien’s image of the dark, cloud-like hand reaching out from Mordor and Sauron, and threatening to engulf Frodo, and this was one of the main elements that inspired this piece. Though I think it works well as a pen drawing, this piece also has the chiaroscuro that makes me definitely want to do it as an etching.
Etching 12 x 9 inches
This is the final version of my etching of Eowyn, with Merry looking on, confronting the Ringwraith, Lord of the Nazgul, The Witch King of Angmar in the midst of the battle of the Pellenor Fields from J.R.R.Tolkien’s, The Lord of the Rings.
I feel that I captured the nightmarish feeling of this scene, of being face to face with the second most powerful malevolent being in Middle Earth. And also the thing that was most important to me, and most appropriate to capture in an etching, that the Lord of the Nazgul, on his winged beast, was as “a great shadow descending like a falling cloud”. This along with Eowyn’s tremendous courage in standing erect in defiance, and her long blond hair showing very clearly that she was not a man, where some of the elements that inspired me in this most powerful scene.
Also there are some important details in this piece that I felt it very important, and exciting, to represent, (and that, I have to say, are often missing or altered in other depictions) . One is that the winged beast has a beak, (as I mentioned elsewhere). And also, something that I found very striking in the Witch King’s description, the fact that between his crown and robe there was nothing to be seen except,”a deadly gleam of eyes”.
Etching
12 x9 inches
For my etching titled Gandalf the Mastermind 2nd state, I added in the middle of the background the One Ring, and, going clockwise from the upper left, The Grey Havens, Hobbiton, Rivendale, Lothlorien, Rohan, Minas Tirith, and finally Mordor, which where some of the important places in The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R.Tolkien, visited by the heroes on their quest to save Middle Earth from the Dark Lord Sauron. These immages where added to the same copper etching plate from which the original Gandalf the mastermind was printed.
I had in mind to do something that would indicate how Gandalf was contemplating the entire strategic situation in Middle Earth, and thus to show what made him a mastermind. I considered different approaches, such as showing the most important characters, like Frodo, Aragorn, Sauron, Elrond, Saruman and Galadriel, or simbols, like the Three Rings, The Winged Crown of Gondor, Barehir’s Ring and so forth. Finally, I went with the important locations because it showed the path of the quest, and I even drew a tiny road passing through the Ring, the significance of which is obvious.
Graphite Drawing
11 x 15 inches
This drawing from J.R.R.Tolkien’s, The Lord of the Rings, depicts the moment when Samwise Gamgee, after breaking free from Gollum, sees Shelob standing over Frodo Baggings, and charges her with his own sword, and Sting. On the brink of Mordor just beyond the cave, this is one of several strong images that are conjured in my mind by the very long sequence where Frodo and Sam are waylaid by Shelob. In my etching “The Courage of Samwise”, I depict the moment where Sam stabs Shelob. Also, though I’m not sure whether to do it as a drawing or an etching, the part of the sequence where Sam holds up the Phial of Galadriel to Shelob, temporarily blinding her would also make a great “light” piece ala Rembrandt, or perhaps Grunewald.
Graphite Drawing
11 x 15 inches
This is my recent drawing of Gandalf Stormcrow’s great horse Shadowfaxlord, of the Mearas the horses of Rohan, from J.R.R.Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. His silvery grey coat, and unriveled speed, flowing like the wind through the night, make him almost seem like an avatar for the notion of freedom. This is what I was attempting to convey in my first drawing in many years. I think it was moderately successful.
My etching, “The Bridge of Kazad-dum”, from J.R.R.Tolkien’s, The Lord of the Rings, depicts the exact moment when Gandalf’s sword, Glamdring shatters the Balrog’s. It is the climax of an incredibly exhilarating sequence that starts with what Leonard Bernstein, speaking about Beethoven’s Fifth, once called, “that whispered hint of things to come”, and ends with a great crescendo. From the moment Gandalf begins to read from Balin’s record book, the narrative takes on a mysteriously ominous feeling. All the time the company is fleeing the excitement builds, as an unknown being of incredible power purses them. The Balrog finally appears, and the crescendo is reached with the battle on the bridge.
The narrow bridge over the black chasm; the small, glimmering wizard; the massive, flame breathing, flaming whip wielding, monster; the shadow-like wings stretching the breath of the cavern; and the flash of light from the shattered sword, all present an image irresistible to any Tolkien illustrator.
Also Tolkien’s language here is absolutely exhilarating:
“From out of the shadow a red sword leaped flaming.
Glamdring glittered white in answer.”
In my etchings based on The Silmarillion, The Lord of the Rings, and other works of professor J.R.R.Tolkien I have attempted to be as true to his words as humanly possible, however one will always make mistakes. Eowyn confronting the Lord of the Nazgul on the Pelinor Field is a scene I have read probably dozens of times, yet, in my etching of it, I still missed an important element. Perhaps seduced into forgetting what I had read by a sketch I did in my twenties, I gave the Winged Beast a sort of dragonish face. However, the text clearly states, “Again it leaped into the air, and then swiftly fell down upon Eowyn, shrieking, striking with beak (italics my own) and claw.” To my chagrin, I realized I had to alter this print. Chagrin, because with an etching this involves a fair amount of work — you must essentially carve into the copper plate, removing old lines with various tools as if it were a sculpture, and then re-etch it.
I have seen this scene depicted by many artists, and, surprisingly, only a very few of these works get this aspect right. My intention is to be more careful with regard to accuracy to the text in my future work. I have frequently practiced artistic license in my other art, and have no problem with this. However, professor Tolkien’s imagery is so vivid and powerful, I really don’t believe there is any need to alter the essential features of the text. Also, I feel the LOTR is a masterpiece, deserving the same care and respect as the work of Shakespeare, or Chaucer.
Anyway, here are the before and after.This piece is still in progress, and, as you can tell. Many other changes have been made beside that mentioned above, with others to follow. One detail that may be of interest is Eowyn’s expression. The text said she had a fell expression, and my altered version shows this. I may have been influenced by the movies in giving her a terrified look, initially.
