RESEARCH Allan Lee/ Tolkien

JRR Tolkien wrote the Lord of the Rings series, but he also created his own visual representaions of the worlds he wrote about. I have looked at a book of his own sketches, and was astounded by the style and detail. All the pieces in the collection appeared as though out of a 30's printing press for a classic novel. (The Trolls, below)

While researching Tolkien's works, I initially found a copy of a version Lord of the Rings illustrated by Alan Lee. While the pieces are detailed and wondrous to look at, they are quite photographic, as they are based on scenes from the films (The Black Gate, below). The concept is there, yet the imagery lacks a certain creativity, Tolkien's and my own seem to get this world across in a more abstract way, giving a feel to the worlds through the techniques and styles, rather then relying solely on imagery.