For this project I will study and depict the world of J. R. R. Tolkien as I see it and as it is described my Tolkien himself. I will use several different mediums to do this which will require me to learn new skills such as Photoshop and painting. In particular, I am hoping to capture the strange mood of Tolkien’s world as depicted in his book The lord of the rings as it delves into more detail than it’s predecessor “The Hobbit” whilst still remaining more madcap than “The Silmarillion”. Accomplishing this with multiple mediums would be ideal; in both experimentation and final pieces. This concept relates to my interest in fantasy literature and more specifically, the worlds that the stories are told in. The concept further relates as I would also be interested in creating a dungeon synth album and some writings of my own in a similar vein to Tolkien’s work.
At the beginning of Unit 2 I drew some moody illustrations that tried to capture the inky black essence of black sabbath and the lord of the rings that I am proud of, I will be aiming for a different vibe this time but I will still use music to aid the creative process and attain an otherworldly result. In the past I have used a blog, social media, posters and sketchbooks to present my work, using something different to display the final piece would be interesting, perhaps a book cover or a series of images placed along side the text that it depicts with a traditional page layout.
I have arrived at this place because I enjoy escapism and have wanted to express that though artwork. That sludgy/fuzzy/jet-black vibe is one that I have rarely heard or seen but should be given more attention. During unit 1 I heavily utilised charcoal for the first time and continued to do so in Unit 2. Other than that, most of my work in the past has been disconnected in terms of subject matter and in medium as well.
Within this project I would like to develop more digital and practical skills as well as interpreting someone else’s work in my own style. Usually my drawings are original and not adaptations of pre-existing ideas, mostly monsters and the like that I have thought of. Previously I have found it challenging to commit to college projects but this has not always been the case. During unit 1 I got green on every category and completed every piece of work that I was set, (on time) During the weeks that followed I became tired of education and found it hard to do any work at all; I was unable to choose an idea that I could commit to at the beginning of unit 2, if I had thought of something compelling early on then I may have overcame my apathy. In the future I will place more concern in finding a good concept that would interest me straight away allowing me to start far earlier and avoid my current predicament .
I would like to develop further contextual understanding of fictional worlds and how one can be brought to life with words as well as visually, I also wish to further understand the concept of interpretation and what changes in the fiction based on the interpreter, how differently do individuals process an idea or in this case, a book?. I will be using new mediums that I have used little of in the past, specifically I would like to learn how to mix paint and layer it properly, I will also further my understanding of digital image editing. I also hope to get better at time management and completing work quickly given my limited time scale, creating a time table will be a priority.
Tolkien’s world has been depicted, described and reinvented countless times in everything from video games to paintings to apparel design. I hope to compare and contrast these different interpretations of such an iconic fictional realm and even gather thoughts and opinions from my peers as well as researching other artists that have tackled Middle Earth to make sure I have done justice to Tolkien’s world and its bizarre denizens. Presenting my work is important so I will try and do this better than I have ever done it in the past using photoshop to touch up illustrations and add filters that adjust the hue and saturation of an image readying them to be presented on my blog that will also be improved with correct categorisation and a consistent theme.
I will refer directly to the books to gather inspiration and quotations that will help me realise the world visually, any descriptions that I use will be logged. I will take special care to present the world as described in the books and not in any of it’s adaptations. By the end of unit 2 I hope to have explored Tolkien’s world in a variety of mediums and committed to the project without shirking my duties as a student, I find it very easy to lose interest but with a subject matter that I am passionate about I should enjoy the work far more. If I can just finish this unit and attain a pass grade then I will be closer to the things that I really care about in life.
Ozzy Chambers' blog 