Thread by @riseupcomus

Y'all know this account is like 50% RPGs/50% yelling about Tolkien. Time for some Tolkien hollering today.

This week I found two new-to-me Tolkien illustrators: Anato Finnstark and Denis Gordeev.

A thread of me yelling about why I like their art.

First, Anato Finnstark
All pics from their Artstation: artstation.com/anto-finnstark

Has a real focus on servants of the Shadow, contrasting with the bright vivid colors of Middle-earth. He pulls on threads of details (like the crown of the Witch King) and evokes them in other scenes

Like, I love the mace of the Witch King here. It's not just a shapeless ball - it's the face of a grim old king. Perhaps himself in life?

Finnstark's art makes Middle-earth feel larger than life. You feel the terror of being the small character contrasted with the huge evil because he places you right behind the protagonist, looking up into the face of darkness.

Denis Gordeev's art is exactly the opposite.
He's probably most famous for doing the Russian covers of the Witcher books.
All pictures from his Livejournal (which is in Russian), which link to this folder: disk.yandex.com/a/x5lrJ8DG3VVt…

Gordeev's art is all about grounding Middle-earth and making it feel more concrete, more tactile. Look how the Hobbits duck under tree branches, stretch on a picnic break, can't fit into the gravegoods of the barrow...

I love the scenes Gordeev chooses to illustrate. A lot of Tolkien illustrators choose sort of the "big" scenes. Gordeev chooses a lot of smaller beats that I don't know that I've seen illustrated before, like this crossing of the Celebrant

Gordeev's Gollum is a nasty little freak. I love how they highlight the similarities - and differences - between Gollum and the Hobbits.

Gordeev nails Strider's big, muddy boots in the Prancing Pony. He illustrates Aragorn a lot like he illustrates Geralt of Rivia, too.

An example of a scene I don't see illustrated a lot - the parting of the Fellowship from Lothlorien, with Galadriel's mead.

It's funny to me how he illustrates Gimli - barely shorter than Aragorn or Legolas. "Dwarf" in the Russian context must be different than our conception.

LOOK at those MF ENTS!

I love how their height and size in this picture.

The practical details about how the Rangers of Ithilien would wear their masks when resting is an example of the simple, physical considerations Gordeev thinks about.

I very much the Renaissance-esque garb that Denethor wears. I love his look of cold calculation contrasted with the fiery madness.

The three-faced idols at Minas Morgul do NOT get the love they deserve - what scary things! I like how the helms of the Morgul orcs are beaked almost in reverence/reference to these dark statues.

Lastly, I just really like the way Hobbits style/fashion is illustrated. Frodo got drip during the Scouring of the Shire.

/thread

I guess this is my Soundcloud plug:
If you like Hobbits _not_ having adventures, check out my TTRPG Under Hill, By Water.

Have a picnic, hide from your annoying relatives, go on a pub crawl instead of a dungeon crawl.

riseupcomus.itch.io/under-hill-by-…