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An Eagle’s View of Middle-earth

the_hobbit_75th_anniversary_edition_by_wes_talbottThe assignment was to create a book cover, but for Wes Talbott, it meant a lot more. J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit has been extremely inspiring and influential to his work, so he designed this beautiful cover in honor of the book’s 75th anniversary. Talbott explained, “My intent was to make the title an ambigram and make the four corner words (spelling out the less well known full title of the book) rotate, encouraging the viewer to actually rotate the book and literally go ‘there and back again.'” (Arwen Kester)

In an exclusive interview with Total Film magazine, Evangeline Lilly described her character, Tauriel, who we’ll see onscreen in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. “She’s a very, very young elf. She’s only 600 years old, unlike Legolas who’s like, 1,900 years old and Thranduil who’s about 3,000 years old. She doesn’t have quite the wisdom and pose that those two boys do; she’s a little more… gritty. A little more spontaneous, passionate perhaps.” She went on to say, “To play this character I need to have a certain amount of grace. But I’m also supposed to be an absolutely ruthless, deadly killer.” (Alice)

Did you find an amazing deal on a letter signed by J.R.R. Tolkein? Steer clear; you can bet that The Professor would never spell his name incorrectly! Pieter Collier of The Tolkien Library created a list of ten helpful tips for avoiding fake Tolkien signatures on eBay. Included in the article are photos of some forgeries and notes about how to spot them. (Lily Milos)

ThranduilWineThorinMead_byramida

Do you prefer Elvish wine or Dwarvish Mead? Either way, Ramida R. has created two perfect liquor labels for your beverage of choice. (Britta)

Lord of the Rings actor Viggo Mortensen will be honored at the AMFM Fest on June 16 where he will receive the Dennis Lee Hopper award. Event director Robert Galarza told TheWrap, “Dennis believed that to be an artist, you had to embrace all the arts. Viggo has his photography, painting, writing, poetry and philosophical musings, in addition to his acting ability, and he has no great ego as an artist. He allows the art to move through him like a vessel, which is how Dennis saw the world.” (Arwen Kester)

Junk Kouture is a recycled fashion and art competition for secondary students in Ireland. The competition, launched in 2010, is famed for morphing everyday waste into high fashion. In fact, their designs turned heads at the London premiere of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey last December. Most recently, Junk Kouture appeared at the Cannes Film Festival. Founder Elizabeth O’Donnell explained, “We decided that following the success of Junk Kouture at the Royal Premiere last year we wanted to give our entrants another opportunity to showcase their designs at a high-scale event and also on an international level.” (Evie Bowman)

3RingsLeft is a band made up of three teen sisters, Christa, Hannah, and Caeli McCutchen. This song, titled “Light,” was inspired by the story of Arwen and Aragorn. (Lily Milos)

Every week, our Middle-earth News reporters seek out Tolkien/Hobbit/LOTR goodness and tag their finds with their names. If you have something to contribute, please submit it using the Got News Precious link at the bottom of the page.

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