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 "A lot of the creative feeling that we had in the art department came from their room, because you just walked in there, and there were hundreds of drawings." Chris Hennah "We simply sat in there and sketched away ten hours a day, five, six days a week." John Howe Alan Lee and John Howe Alan Lee and John Howe are the world's two most famous (and best, in my opinion) Tolkien artists. They had done covers for the books, illustrated versions of the books, and Tolkien calendars, among other things. When Peter Jackson was thinking about who to hire as conceptual designers, Alan Lee and John Howe seemed like good choices, and they got the pair on board, without needing much persuasion! The two of them, who met on the plane on the way to New Zealand, are now friends. Alan Lee and John Howe are my two favourite Tolkien artists; they were still my favourites even when I didn't know about their involvement in the films. Their work has a realism and tangibility that most other Tolkien artists don't have. Their knowledge of Tolkien is immense, as is the awe-inspiring work that they have done for the films, producing hundreds, if not thousands, of drawings. The look of so much in the films really does come from Alan and John. The pair worked together, in the same office, and collaboratively produced the Tolkien-esque look of the films. For example, the Black Gate in the film was designed by John, but was taken from an illustration of Alan's some years previously. They were heavily involved with Weta and Richard Taylor's team of designers, working with them to achieve much of the vision. John Howe, too was very skilled in armour and swordplay, and instructed the Workshop in these matters. Such expertise, combined with such love and passion for the work, Alan and John brought to the making of the films. Quotes: "I didn't really need to think about it, actually. I just said, 'Yes, I'll come over.'" Alan Lee "There was Peter and Fran on the phone making a very, very sincere sales pitch for the project, and it was really a question of waiting for them to finish so I could say yes." John Howe "Peter actually got quite a good deal by hiring Alan and I, because he was able to dip into all this material that we'd spent a decade doing before, so he got two for the price of one!" John Howe "I draw very intuitively, in a way. I don't think too much about what I'm doing beforehand." Alan Lee "It was really important that we share an office because it would have been so ridiculous, each one of us to lock ourselves away in a closed room. We were found space in the Weta Workshop." John Howe Links: John Howe's website John Howe's CoE Gallery Alan Lee's CoE Gallery John Howe's IMDb listing Alan Lee's IMDb listing  My favourite Alan Lee illustration!  And my favourite John Howe illustration! | |