Tolkien portraits

[Pitchwife]

The Snowdon portrait was the first picture of Tolkien I ever saw (in a promotion leaflet from the German publishers of the Silmarillion, way back in the late 70s, which also contained, as a teaser, the first chapter of the Sil I ever read - Of the Darkening of Valinor, IIRC). At the time, he seemed to belong with those trees - to my younger eyes, he looked as old as the earth, as weird, ancient and otherworldly as the world of his tales. I didn't notice the look of old age and loss, but now you mention it, it's obvious.
(By the way, the trees strongly remind me of those on Tolkien's own painting of Taur-nu-Fuin/Mirkwood.)

[Mithalwen]

Thank you Pitchwife - that is interesting that it was used for that purpose ... certainly more intriguing than the classic author photograph.

I agree about Mirkwood... though there is some light it just serves to make the darkness..darker - and there is something a bit fey about it...and the way he seems almost to emerge from the roots.

On a side note, some people have been kind enough to tell me privately they like this but feel they have nothing to add. I had hoped that by putting it on N&N that it might encourage posting since I thought it was something that could be responded to by anyone who looked regardless of whether they were completely au fait with every detail of Tolkien's life and work. So I hope we might get a few more responses even if they are just an impression.

[Lalaith]

It seems to me to be of a man who has grown more tree-ish.

[Bêthberry]

Like Esty, I have not seen this before, so I certainly thank Mithalwen for posting it here.

It certainly an interesting and original portrait and rather surprising given that Snowdon reportedly hated reading. He must have done his homework on his subjects.

It's interesting that only the tiniest part of Tolkien's head meets the sky. As others have said before, altogether tree-ish.

Did Tolkien himself ever publicly comment on the portrait? It would be fascinating to know what he thought of it.

[Mithalwen]

http://www.stumbleupon.com/s/#85XCS4...ic:Photography

http://checkpoint.ansible.co.uk/cp014.html I am still researching but won't have much time now until after the weekend.

Since the portrait was taken in Bournemouth I imagine that it was in the vicinity of the Miramar (since Tolkien had returned to Oxford by then) - however it could be Branksome where he used to live and where he returned to visit the Tolhursts. I may go and take a look.

[garm]

The picture was taken in Branksome Chine, not far from the Tolkiens' bungalow in Lakeside Road, Bournemouth, on 25th May 1971. It was for an article on Tolkien's 80th birthday, and was published in the Sunday Times magazine on 2 January 1972.
(Scull & Hammond; The JRR Tolkien Companion and Guide Vol.I)

The article, written by William Cater, is called 'The Lord of the Hobbits'. This is where the phrase used on the dust-jackets of later editions of LotR comes from: '(For) the English speaking world is divided into those who have read his books _The Hobbit_ and _The Lord of the Rings_ and those who are going to read them'.

Snowdon took some more pictures that day, including the one with Tolkien on the sea shore which is used on the front cover of the paperback ed. of _The Monsters and the Critics and Other Essays_ in 1997.

As for the branksome Chine portrait - I first came across this picture as a poster in my LP of music inspired by LotR, by Bo Hanson (1972).

[garm]

Looking at the link which the OP gives to the National Gallery, I see they've dated the colour picture of Tolkien as September 1961. I think that's a mistake on their part. Chandler visited the Tolkiens twice: in 1961 and again in 1966, when she took photos of Ronald and Edith on the occassion of their 50th wedding anniversary.

One of the 1961 pictures - that is, the black and white one shown on the National gallery website - was used as a frontispiece to the 1962 festschrift _English and Medieval Studies Presented to JRR Tolkien on the Occasion of his Seventieth Birthday_, ed. by Norman Davis and C.L. Wrenn. This book is further distinguished in that it has a facsimile signature of Tolkien's, under the photograph, leading some to believe that it's a 'real, signed copy'.

There's a set of these photographs available; five colour, all of 1966, and three from 1961; these are black & white. They all have the year of copyright printed on the reverse. They make a very nice set.

There was a display of prints of these photos at last year's Oxonmoot (the annual weekend conference of the Tolkien Society). It was possible to order high quality prints, in various sizes. The largest of these was very large indeed; the type you'd most likely see framed on the wall of a museum or such like. I didn't order any; I'm quite happy with my set of post card sized pictures.