Reverse Ekphrasis: Art in The Hobbit

Ekphrasis:  a literary description of or commentary on a visual work of art.

The other day, I stumbled upon an online article entitled, "Tolkien Could Draw? Who Knew!?" and my immediate response was "pretty much everyone." I mean, he made the cover art and illustrations for his own book, and surely everyone who's familiar with The Hobbit is familiar with the cover of the first few editions.

And though it struck me as incredulous that a fan of Tolkien should be unaware of the maps and illustrations he produced for his own books, there's something in that ignorance that actually speaks to the power and level of Tolkien's literary art.

Reading the annotated version of the novel is an incredibly enlightening experience. What I most enjoy about it is seeing all the various illustrations that were once included with printings of the book in countless editions and cultures. Seeing a Hungarian portrayal of the dwarves and a Japanese portrayal of the company with Lord Elrond makes for a very interesting comparison in both personal interpretation and imagination of the text, and the artistic styles of the vastly different cultures. One of my favorite juxtapositions occurred in the chapter "Riddles in the Dark," where the annotations included a 1997 illustration of Gollum by Alan Lee, and a 1977 illustration of the same character by Maret Kerumees for the Estonian edition.

It is so wonderful to see the varied art inspired by The Hobbit. Though Tolkien's own illustrations are widely known and distributed, not every drawing of Rivendell or Hobbiton or Gandalf looks like the author's own portrayal. Characters are warped and changed to suit the imagination and culture of every illustrator who takes a liking to the story. I think there is something valuable in that.

I would argue that The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings are two novels that have inspired some of the most creative and fantastic art in all of fantasy lit. And the author having dabbled in illustration, instead of setting the standard for all art that would henceforth come out of his work, drew not to be an authority, but simply to act upon the wildness of imagination that came from his novels that his readers would experience as well.

That being said, as long as these books are in print, I think art will be coming out of it anywhere from the high schooler in his basement with comic book covers on his walls to celebrated artists and illustrators all over the world. And the best part of it is that the works of either of these people would be cherished as equally valid. That's the beauty of a creative work like The Hobbit, and all it has, and will, inspire.