Presenting – Ed Beard Jr and CONTEST!

Written by My Middle-earth member Rifflo.

For over 30 years the fantasy art of Ed Beard Jr has been licensed on over a thousand products around the world. He is best known for his works illustrating dragons, wizards and fantasy art as well as his many works on Tolkien and Lord of the Rings products. Ed’s work has graced products for top companies such as, Hasbro/Wizard’s of the Coast, Dungeons and Dragons, and Magic: The Gathering game and toy company products. More recently you can view Ed’s work in mainstream media sources such as Verizon Mobile, Orange UK Mobile Phone Co., Tide Mark/Calendar Manufacturer, and the list continues.

Presenting, Ed Beard Jr…

Rifflo: Can you tell me about yourself and how you got involved with creating fantasy art?

Ed: I’ve been illustrating Fantasy art properties and hand painting original art for collectors for the past 30 years. I was always a fan of great wizards and dragons since I was 11 yrs old and drew these subjects every chance i got. Back in the mid 70′s I was scolded by the public school teacher for creating images of fantasy and told repeatedly that it was nothing more than commercial and not a fine art subject. Of course I begged to differ, left her class and began my journey into my own middle earthy so to speak. Now four decades later I create images of wizards and dragons as well as all things Tolkien inspired for a living. Since that time I have illustrated over 1000 products and collectibles including the annual Dragon calendar found at B&N and other worldwide books stores. Much of my work as with all fantasy artists has come from the amazing tales of J.R.R. Tolkien

Rifflo: Lesson here seems to be to follow your dream, work hard, and don’t let people sway you away from your goals. Must be satisfying to think back to the “scolding” and realize your 30 years of a successful career based around dragons and wizards?

Ed: Yes it has given me a great sense of vindication and achievement. Since high school I have made it a point to visit schools across the country and participate in their “Book fair’s” by educating young people on how important the world of fantasy and fiction in general is to humanity and to make sure that what happened to me does not taint or hinder any other young persons desire to explore the art of the fantastic.

Rifflo: What specific aspects of your approach to depicting the story of ”The Lord of the Rings”, make you unique and set you apart from other artists who have used Tolkien’s work as their inspiration.

Ed: I truly enjoy capturing the very essence of Gandalf or Saruman when I create my wizards. Just look at my “Wizards Emissary “art and you will clearly see that classic tattered wide brim wizard hat rather than the more expected cone wizard hat. My dragons tend to have great intelligence much like that of Smaug as written by Tolkien. When I was commissioned to do the “Eye of Sauron” for the card game Middle earth the Wizards, the art directors made it clear that this was one of the most important cards of the series and needed to truly capture the vision of Tolkien. That piece took much planning back and forth until it did the great masters (Tolkien) writings justice. I simply enjoy the more high fantasy classic vision that was middle earth as opposed to the more contemporary writings of similar characters.

Rifflo: “Wizard’s Emissary” is one of my favourite pieces! When creating the art for the card game, did the art director give you other information in order to give you ideas for you pictures? Ie: what the powers or stats the cards would have.

Ed: As the illustrator for games in general we are not given any information on the mechanics of the card’s playability for fear by the company that we may divulge that information to the public. In the case of the over 100 Magic the gathering cards I have created all but a handful were very playable in tournament and yet I feel some of my best work is on the least playable cards. As a professional you have to take every assignment and treat it as if it’s the star playing card of the deck.

Rifflo: Tolkien spent a great deal of time and effort in creating a rich cultural feel to the different races in ”The Lord of The Rings”, what are some of the specific historical styles of art and culture which you have used to influence your depiction of the story.

Ed: Well fortunately Tolkien drew from actual historical cultures and as in many ways he was writing about the very wars and struggles we have in world powers today. Whether it was clothing, armor or scenery, Tolkien was so detailed in his descriptions it was not that difficult to draw comparisons to the different ages of man in real history as reference.

Rifflo: Is there any one particular element of the books/lore which you found especially challenging to illustrate? If so, why?

Ed: Not really. Tolkien gave so much detail with his writing that I found it pretty direct to visualize. However if I had to pick a subject it would have to be the Woses as they were described much like the aborigines of Australia.

Rifflo: That being said, what was the easiest for you to create based on Tolkien’s description?

Ed: Definitely “Gandalf” as there is so much interaction to so many characters that you get a well rounded visual on his look and personality

Rifflo: What specifically attracted you to created works based on the Tolkien lore?

Ed: As a child I loved these stories and could get lost in the world imagining so many different creatures. So when Iron Crown approached me in 1995 to create 14 painting from Tolkien lore, I was honored to be a part of this artistic venture.

Rifflo: If Tolkien had not written ”The Lord of the Rings”, what do you feel the impact on 20th century literature would have been?

Ed: I believe that the Lord of the Rings launched what we know today as the modern era of fantasy in both art and literature. Without these stories I believe it would have taken decades, perhaps until the mid-50′s and folks like EC comics and the collectible mythological based stories to mutate into the fantasy we know today genres.

Rifflo: Do you feel that the LOTR films and the upcoming Hobbit films truly capture the spirit of Tolkien’s work?

Ed: Of all the fantasy related literature brought to film I do believe that (Peter) Jackson’s vision was most accurate to what we have otherwise seen in movie adaptations. I know there was some artistic license and even outright additions that never happened in the books but as a whole it captured the texture perfectly.

Rifflo: I agree. I think the right changes and additions were made with his interpretations. What were your thoughts of the “artistic license” Peter Jackson added, such as the addition of the “expanded” role of Arwen , depictions of the Elves, etc?

Ed: Ah yes that one did stand out a bit. I personally would have rather given Frodo his spotlight alone as it was written, when he crossed the river pursued by the Ring wraiths. As for the Elves, I enjoyed the architecture and vision of Lothlórien greatly

Rifflo: What advice would you give when creating works for a series of books/lore, such as the Tolkien stories?

Ed: The best advise that I give and use myself when illustrating fantasy subjects is to not make them depicted too posed or as if someone just photographed the models but instead bring the “surrealism” of the subjects to believable yet allow the viewer to put their own imagination into the art. It’s fantasy after all so it should look and feel like a dream.

Rifflo: Finally, where can people find your work?

Ed: My website where you can locate my original art, prints and collectible or even commission your own fantasy to be visually created iswww.edbeardjr.com and you can stay updated to my most recent works by befriending me on Facebook.

Be sure to visit Ed’s website and Facebook page for more art and information!

My thanks to Ed for his time!

CONTEST TIME!

Win a copy of Ed Beard Jr’s first book, “Enchanted Realm”, with a special bonus! You will receive, from Ed, an original hand-drawn picture of Gandalf on the inside front cover!

How to win!

To win this amazing prize from Ed Beard Jr, first, you must…. CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING.

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