LOOKING at Alan Lee Beatrix Potter & Marija Tiurina
Collected and Annotated by Simone Elizabeth, Saeedeh & Anastasiia
CONTENTS Beatrix POTTER
Alan LEE
Marija TIURINA
Beatrix POTTER Beatrix Potter was born in 1866 in London. She was a writer, illustrator, natural scientist, and conservationist recognized mainly for her specialized work in the children’s audience. She had her education at home, which provoked, years later, the statement: “I’m glad I did not go to school, it would have rubbed off some of the originality.” Her works are the result of a childhood in proximity to nature and love of country life. Also, she had the artistic influence of his parents (his father particularly interested in photography and his mother skilled at embroidery and watercolors). Her work is relevant to this day and is kept alive especially through the character Peter Rabbit who, in addition to the books, has already been represented in animated series and films. This character appeared for the first time in 1902 in “The Tale of Peter Rabbit” and had five other books dedicated to him. From the technical point of view, Potter’s work is recognizable by the light tones and delicate features. She used watercolor in creating iconic characters and beautiful landscapes. The main motifs are the animals (rabbits, ducks and cats for example) that have a leading role in her stories and brings natural environments as a backdrop. Her characters are anthropomorphized in order to captivate the infantile audience through identification. Furthermore, she was brilliant when
put a blue jacket in her main character and made him special. From the historical point of view, she was a distinct woman because, unlike her own family, she had not devoted her life to the search for a husband. On the contrary, Beatrix put work at the top of her agenda. As a result of her dedication to writing and illustration and entrepreneurial gaze, she was able to stand independently and become the owner of a large portion of land. These lands were even left, after her death in 1943, for the National Trust with the aim of being preserved for future generations. Beatrix Potter was true to her ideals and defended these lands against the industrialists who wanted to develop the region.
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Finally, in addition to being one of the many children that met and was inspired by Beatrix Potter through her captivating characters, I admire her today as a person who did not live the life others expected of her. And just like this artist, I try to develop my ability to visually tell stories to children, I use and admire watercolor arts, especially with the most delicate features, and I also have nature as inspiration in my creative process. I hope, like her, to mark people and inspire good things through art.
Bibliography
(left to right, top to bottom) Thomson, Keith. (2007) Marginalia: Beatrix Potter, Conservationist. American Scientist Journal. [online] Vol. 95, No. 03. (MAY-JUN 2007). Pp. 210-212. Available from: https://wwwjstor-org.ezproxy.herts.ac.uk/stable/27858956?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents [Accessed: 05 November 2018] Biography [online] Available at: https://www.biography.com/ people/beatrix-potter-9445208 [Accessed 05 November 2018] Beatrix Potter [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Beatrix_Potter [Accessed 05 November 2018] Peter Rabbit [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Peter_Rabbit [Accessed 05 November 2018] Beatrix Potter’s Letters to Children: The Path to Her Books. By Marta McDowell [online] Available at: https://www.literaryladiesguide.com/literary-musings/letters-to-children-frombeatrix-potter-a-path-to-her-books/ [Accessed 05 November 2018] Header Figure. Beatrix Potter. Watercolor on paper [online] Available at: https://www.slashfilm.com/peter-rabbit-movie/ [Accessed 05 November 2018] Figure 1.Potter, B. (1903). Gentleman Mouse: the Tailor of Gloucester. England: Frederick Warne [online] Available at: https://www.everymantheatre.org.uk/m-shows/beatrix-potter-and-the-tailor-of-gloucester/ [Accessed 05 November 2018] Figure 2. Potter, B. (1902). Peter: the Tale of Peter Rabbit. England: Frederick Warne [online] Available at: https://i.pinimg. com/originals/16/d8/17/16d8173e7ffde972512cc2f83b3b6f77.png [Accessed 05 November 2018] Figure 3. Potter, B, Mrs. Rabbit With Flopsy, Mopsy, Cotton-Tail & Peter The Tale of Peter Rabbit [online] Available at: https:// www.jojomamanbebe.ie/beatrix-potter-greeting-card-peter-rabbit-d9456.html [Accessed 05 November 2018]
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Alan LEE Overview of Biography and Description of the Business Practice Alan Lee has been illustrating for 40 years many illustrating books and working on in prints. He has been working 12 years with Peter Jackson on the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit Movies as the conceptual designer. Before the “Lord of the Rings”, He had been working on mythology, fairy tales folklore and legends. He had illustrated Castles(Day 1984) companioned by Canadian Author David Day. The Castles, recountslegends, folk stories,and fairy tales dealing with castles from the traditions of England, Norway, Germany, and other countries. Some of his other worksbefore “the lord of the rings” are: Faeries (1978 L& Froud) , Merlin Dreams (D 1988) The Moon’s Revenge (A &L (illustrator), 1987) Gradually he converged with the Tolkien publishing phenomenon. By illustrating the Anglo Saxon poems in The Wanderer & Other Old-English Poems (L (illustrator), 2018) he has been able to go from illustrating Tolkien to go back to the materials that originally had influenced him. Lee described his works as a sort of archaeology and back to the early time of beginning a mythology)
(Available Exclusively from Folio Society, 18.4. 2018) He offered a collection of his works as in “the Lord of the Rings Sketchbook” (Lee 2015) in relation to Tolkien, the books he had illustrated and to the films, he has worked. -The Lord of the Rings- and -The Hobbit.
Inspirations He has influenced by the huge number of artists and what they have in common is they are superb draftsmen He was particularly influenced by Edmund Dulac (1882 -1953), as far as colour technique goes. Pre-Raphaelite painters Walter Crane (1845-1915) Edward Burne-Jones(1833-1898), as well as Symbolist painters Gustave Moreau(1826-1898) Arthur Rackham(1867-1939) overall 19th century and earlier 20th centuries, are the most inspiring sources for his approach. By transfiguring the countryside around him (Devon) he created the landscape of middle earth and filled them with dwarf elves orcs etc. He drew a lot of his inspirations from the locality.
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Identification As an illustration student, there is an approach which I favour: illustrating the books aimed for adults. I personally interested in literature and depicting the Epics attracts me. Alan Lee as a professional Epic illustrator, who involved in fantasy fairy tales, myth, and legend over his life is perfect to be a role model to me. Besides his works and his approach, he has very inspiring notions which help me in my pathway.
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Figure 1: Lee, A. (2005). Preface page. [Pencil Drawing]. The Lord of the Rings sketchbook P: Front Matter: Houghton Mifflin. Figure 2 Lee, A. (1982). Inside illustration. The Mabinogion, Dragon’s Dream, Hendrik- Netherlands Figure 3 Lee, A. (1982). Cover binding Design. The Mabinogion, Dragon’s Dream, Hendrik- Netherlands Figure 4 Lee, A. (1982). They could see the walled town, the fairest anyone had ever seen. [Watercolour]: The Mabinogion, Dragon’s Dream, Hendrik- Netherlands
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Style
Figure 5 Lee, A. (1991). The Two Towers: Two oliphaunts appear in the ambush in Ithilien-The Lord of the Rings- England: Houghton Mifflin.
Alan Lee applies the ancient motifs to create the individual binding design. He regards “Little opportunities that probably people wouldn’t notice but if they do listen, here is a little bonus” (YouTube 条, 2015) He prefers to concentrate on the old landscapes, environment, and atmosphere. Probably figures in his artworks appear quite small among the wide views of the cities the woods and mountains. This method is not required to get too close to the characters and to leave the readers free for imagination. He found the method helpful for the lord of the rings. In the Lee philosophy, in an illustrated book, the paramount is text and the role of illustrator to support it as far as she/he can and to enrich the reader’s enjoyment.
Bibliography
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Marija TIURINA Her skills include everything from traditional drawing to Adobe Suite and 3ds Max. She finds inspiration in other artists’ works such as Hieronymus Bosch and constantly works on her creative process. A lot of people are familiar with her work from Wacom adverts. The company still uses her self-portrait as the main key visual. Marija claims that she does not feel attached to one specific creative field and the learning process never stops for her as she is also interested in photography, sculpting, embroidery, collage and anything else she will discover in the future.
Marija Tiurina is a Russian artist. She has lived in London, UK for the last 8 years where she graduated from Brunel University in 2013. Currently, she works for an illustration agency called Wonderbly and does independent projects in her free time.
Her style is known for complex and detailed compositions. The characters have prolonged limbs and big blurry eyes, which makes Marija’s art stand out from others. The lighting has distinctive features too – the objects look glossy and slippery, whereas the colour palette is full of earthy and dark shades. Even the brightest artworks retain a dark gothic feel. To some extent, her work resembles Halloween illustrations and Tim Burton’s cartoons. Marija’s favourite media is watercolour as it is more flexible to work with. She also uses acrylic paint and is brilliant at digital art. Moreover, she is familiar with basic animation.
Personally, I find Marija not only a gifted artist but an inspirational person too. She developed her own style that is easily recognisable and gained a lot of popularity online. She is proficient at many different tools and never stops to learn. I am not seeking public acceptance. However, I would love to do high-quality work like her.
After I finish my university course, I intend to extend my skills: learn Adobe Animate, After Effects and master watercolour illustration. Marija motivates me with her passion for design and illustration. Her video tutorials are a great reference for my studies. In addition, I am planning to broaden my knowledge about typography and grid structure. I believe it’s important for an illustrator to be proficient at graphic design as the two fields are strongly connected. Marija’s detailed style is admirable and inspires me to discover my own that would differentiate my work from others. One thing I do not like about Marija is the lack of narrative behind her works. I feel that art should be used to communicate with the audience rather than just appeal to them. I work as a graphic designer and intend to do so in the future. Illustration would be my hobby to create meaningful artworks or a freelance job because it cannot be the main source of income with my skillset.
Bibliography
(left to right, top to bottom) Tiurina, M. (2015). Seasonal Illustrations. [image] Available at: http://marijatiurina.com/?portfolio=seasonal-illustrations. Katsman, T. (2015). Marija Tiurina. [image] Available at: https://www.instagram.com/p/9Ri6dThc7N/. Tiurina, M. (2015). Self-portrait. [image] Available at: http:// marijatiurina.com/?portfolio=self-portrait. Tiurina, M. (2018). The Hideout. [image] Available at: http:// marijatiurina.com/?portfolio=the-hideout. Tiurina, M. (2015). Seasonal Illustrations. [image] Available at: http://marijatiurina.com/?portfolio=seasonal-illustrations. Tiurina, M. (2015). Seasonal Illustrations. [image] Available at: http://marijatiurina.com/?portfolio=seasonal-illustrations.
Let’s review POSTMODERNISM
Death of J. R. R. Tolkien
Beatrix Potter Birthday Beatrix Potter entered the world of commercial publication
Beatrix Potter published The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle
Beatrix Potter published The Fairy Caravan in America Beatrix Potter was voted President-elect of the HSBA
Alan Lee Birthday Beatrix Potter Death
Alan Lee read the Lord of the Rings for the first time Alan lee published The Merlin Dreams
The First 3D Video Games
The Lord of the Rings movie
Marija Tiurina was born Alan Lee started the Conceptual Design
Alan Lee received the Academy Award for best art collection Alan Lee published The Lord of the Rings Sketchbook
2015
Adobe Photoshop Initial release
1975
1955
Rising the Post-Punk
1945
1935
1925
1915
1905
1895
Beatrix Potter published The Tale of Peter Rabbit
Adobe Creative Suite
The First 3D Video Games
Women's suffrage in England
1885
1875
1865
Frederick Warne & Co. was founded
The Lord of The Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
2005
Norman Warne death
1965
The National Trust was founded
POST-COLD WAR
1995
COLD WAR
1990
THE WORLD WAR II
1985
THE WORLD WAR I
Alan Lee published The Wanderer & Other Old-English Poems
Marija Tiurina illustrated the "Kingdom of You" Alan Lee published The Odyssey Marija Tiurina Graduated from Brunel University
Bibliography COVER (consists of the cutouts of the following artworks) Lee, A. (2005). The Lord of the Rings Sketchbook. 10th ed. New York: HarperCollins Publishers. Lee, A. (2012). Hobbit concept. [image] Available at: https://www.geeknative.com/35648/concept-art-forthe-hobbit-an-unexpected-journey/. Tiurina, M. (2017). Untitled. [image] Available at: http:// marijatiurina.tumblr.com/post/159457719809/heyguys-here-are-some-small-traditional-drawings. Potter, B. (n.d.). Beatrix Potter Greeting Card Peter Rabbit. [image] Available at: https://www.jojomamanbebe.co.uk/beatrix-potter-greeting-card-peter-rabbit-d9456.html.
CONTENTS PAGE Hulton Archive (1892). Beatrix Potter. [image] Available at: https://www.biography.com/news/beatrix-potter-facts-biography. Katsman, T. (2015). Marija Tiurina. [image] Available at: https://www.instagram.com/p/9Ri6dThc7N/. Minochka, I. (2016). Alan Lee. [image] Available at: https://www.tolkiensociety.org/2016/03/alan-lee-tobe-guest-of-honour-at-springmoot/.