The Hobbit Sketchbook

(Hardback)

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Description

This richly illustrated book celebrates in words and pictures the beautiful work that award-winning artist Alan Lee produced for J.R.R. Tolkiens The Hobbit, and includes dozens of brand-new paintings and pencil drawings exploring the world of Bilbo Baggins.
Since The Hobbit was first published in 1937, generations of readers have fallen under its spell. That magic was reignited sixty years later, when Alan Lee was commissioned to produce a special illustrated edition, and his delicate pencil drawings and beautiful watercolour paintings have become for many the definitive vision of J.R.R. Tolkiens Middle-earth.

In this sumptuous, large-format hardback Alan Lee reveals in pictures and in words how he created these images, which would prove so powerful, matching perfectly with Tolkiens own vision, that they would eventually define the look of Peter Jacksons film adaptations and earn Alan a coveted Academy Award.

The Hobbit Sketchbook is filled with more than 100 of his sketches and early conceptual pieces that reveal how the project progressed from idea to finished art. It also contains a wealth of brand-new full-colour paintings and sketches drawn specially for this book, which unlock the secrets of how Alan creates his own magic and provide a fascinating insight into the imagination of the man who breathed new life into Tolkiens vision.

Reviews

Alan Lees artwork has a beauty and lyricism about it. His art captured what I hoped to capture with the films.
Peter Jackson

Praise for the Great Tales trilogy:
[The Children of Hrin is] the darkest of all Tolkiens tales. Alan Lees illustrations complement the writing splendidly.
Times Literary Supllement

Critical moments are caught [in Beren and Lthien], as in The Children of Hrin, by Alan Lees nine outstanding colour plates.
Times Literary Supplement

Author Bio

Alan Lee is the illustrator of the highly-successful centenary edition of The Lord of the Rings and diamond edition of The Hobbit. He studied graphic design and the depiction of Celtic and Norse myths and has illustrated a wide range of books, including Faeries, Merlin Dreams and Castles, and was conceptual designer for Terry Jones' film Erik the Viking. He was awarded the Kate Greenaway Medal for his illustrated edition of Black Ships Before Troy.