Museum-Quality Matte Paper Print available:
12" x 16" (30cm x 40cm): $35.00
 
“I never called Edith Lúthien — but she was the source of the story that in time became the chief part of the Silmarillion. It was first conceived in a small woodland glade filled with hemlocks at Roos in Yorkshire (where I was for a brief time in command of an outpost of the Humber Garrison in 1917, and she was able to live with me for a while.) In those days her hair was raven, her skin clear, her eyes brighter than you have seen them, and she could sing — and dance.” - J.R.R. Tolkien to his son Christopher, Letter Number 340
 
This original watercolor depicts a famous moment in the life of J.R.R. Tolkien in which his wife, Edith Bratt Tolkien, danced for him in a woodland glade at Roos in East Yorkshire in 1917. Professor Tolkien later remembered his bride as dancing amongst beautiful white hemlocks, but later scholars have supposed that the flowers were actually the very similar cow parsley, which still grows in ethereal abundance in this area.
 
Bring home a museum-quality print to enjoy these details:
 
I worked closely from available photographs of J.R.R. Tolkien and his wife from this period.
In choosing Edith's attire, the style of her dress is of the period and I have hinted at the roots of the story of Lúthien by garbing her in blue and giving a period embellishment to her gown which suggests the Lúthien insignia. Many dresses of this period featured similar geometrics in beading or embroidery.
I have carefully studied the photography of Michael Flowers, who has beautifully documented the scenery at Roos. I thank him for much inspiration for this watercolor.
The larger theme I hoped to convey here is the way in which war robs humanity of beauty. As Edith dances away from a young J.R.R. Tolkien in drab army uniform, we can see how easily beauty can slip away. Few authors have written more movingly or gloriously about the subject of earthly beauty.
 
The story of Ronald and Edith's lifelong devotion to each other is one I find inspiring. If you bring a print of this painting into your home, you, too, can celebrate their tender romance.