Art that reminds you

[LostBoy]

Somebody in another thread mentioned Josephine Wall and that reminded me of a picture I used to have as a poster on my wall. I'm going to present it without commentary first.



Most obviously, the scene inside the bird is like she deliberately drew Valinor. Like it couldn't even BE anything else. The rest of it to me looks like Galadriel in Lothlórien when all the golden leaves have fallen in the stream, just like she was singing about, where they will then be swept out to sea and possibly find their way to Valinor. This vision is inspired when she sees ships going out that way with the leaves, but not with her - all she has is memories of the west and the idle dream of returning on a ship of her own.

It's just too perfect.

Are there any other pictures like this that so obviously invoke Tolkien, and inspire you guys (girls)?

[Meneldur Olvarion]

I haven't had this experience myself, but I am not much drawn to art collecting, so my experience in itself means nothing. I do remember that JRRT himself had such an experience, in a rather unusual fashion:

[...] A few years ago I was visited in Oxford by a man whose name I have forgotten (though I believe he was well-known). He had been much struck by the curious way in which many old pictures seemed to him to have been designed to illustrate The Lord of the Rings long before its time. He brought one or two reproductions. I think he wanted at first simply to discover whether my imagination had fed on pictures, as it clearly had been by certain kinds of literature and languages. When it became obvious that, unless I was a liar, I had never seen the pictures before and was not well acquainted with pictorial Art, he fell silent. I became aware that he was looking fixedly at me. Suddenly he said: 'Of course you don't suppose, do you, that you wrote all that book yourself?'

Pure Gandalf! I was too well acquainted with G. to expose myself rashly, or to ask what he meant. I think I said: 'No, I don't suppose so any longer.' I have never since been able to suppose so. An alarming conclusion for an old philologist to draw concerning his private amusement. But not one that should puff any one up who considers the imperfections of 'chosen instruments', and indeed what sometimes seems their lamentable unfitness for the purpose.

[LostBoy]

Daaaaaaaaaamn.

So, he was at least somewhat aware of what was going on. It's surprising to find out that apparently people were making pictures like this before his writings, too - I really wish he indicated what the pictures were! Then we could look them up and see this art ourselves.

[Meneldur Olvarion]

I will see if I can determine what those paintings were and their authorship. I know such data is not in any of his extant writings that have been published -- most likely I will have to see if any of his aquaintances ever wrote of this from their POV.

[Lúthien]

Interesting quote that, Dave.

[Calantirniel]

Oh that is an awesome quote, I didn't know about that - he is so clever that JRRT! ;-) Duck and cover, right?

I have said in the past that I believe that others have found this "door" into this realm, before Tolkien did, as well as during and after. So what is special about Tolkien's journeying compared to any others? I believe it was his uncanny linguistic ability, both a raw talent and through experience he had pursued to perfect that talent better than anyone to my knowledge in the last 100 years or so! :-)

[Lúthien]

I think so as well, plus the fact that he was intelligent to form an understanding of what he was up to and how it related to the everyday world. He really dealt with his experience.

Oh yes, and he was (probably because of his being Catholic) open to the reality of "something other than factual reality".

[Calantirniel]

I think it was being Catholic as well as later being involved in academia that led him to communicate to others under the radar so that he would not reveal he did not really believe as they do. He was brilliant at this.

I also believe he was just open to the experience, Catholic or not. In fact in my eyes, Catholicism has a rather rigid view of thinking everything outside their description is evil, so I know this is not something that encouraged him in this area. That had to come within him.

[Lúthien]

(...)In fact in my eyes, Catholicism has a rather rigid view of thinking everything outside their description is evil, so I know this is not something that encouraged him in this area. That had to come within him.

No, I meant Catholic as Religious as it stands opposed to Secular which, regardless of what rigidity it might suffer from, does accept a non-factual reality at least.