Frank Frazetta – Gollum, The Lord of the Rings Portfolio Plate Original Art, 1975

Artist: Frank Frazetta (1928–2010)

Title: Gollum

Year: 1975

Publication: The Lord of the Rings Portfolio

Publisher: Middle Earth

Medium: Ink on paper

Size: 11.5 × 13 inches (29.2 × 33 cm) Image Area, larger scale than the artowkr for the other portfolio plates

A magnificent original Frank Frazetta illustration of Gollum, created for his celebrated The Lord of the Rings Portfolio in 1975. The portfolio presented Frazetta's personal interpretation of J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth through six plates and was issued in a limited edition of just 1,000 copies.

Gollum was reportedly Frazetta's favorite character from Tolkien's world, and the subject clearly fascinated him: surviving preliminary studies show him repeatedly developing Gollum for the portfolio. This highly finished ink work demonstrates the extraordinary draftsmanship behind Frazetta's paintings, with dense blacks, fine linework and dramatic contrasts creating a wonderfully sinister interpretation of one of fantasy literature's most iconic characters.

Frazetta's Tolkien imagery is particularly significant because it predates the modern movie interpretations of Middle-earth by decades, presenting an entirely independent vision of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit from the artist who did more than almost anyone to define the visual language of modern fantasy.

Artist: Frank Frazetta

Frank Frazetta (1928–2010) is widely regarded as one of the greatest fantasy illustrators of the 20th century. His legendary career included iconic artwork for Conan the Barbarian, Tarzan, John Carter of Mars, Death Dealer, Vampirella, Creepy, Eerie and Famous Funnies, alongside movie posters including What's New Pussycat?, The Fearless Vampire Killers and The Gauntlet.