John Howe's Ultimate Fantasy Art Academy

Discover the creative processes and intriguing inspirations behind the work of leading fantasy artist John Howe – conceptual designer on The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy – in this enhanced, immersive audiobook.

Read by the author with an original soundscape composed and performed by lifelong Tolkien fan Jordan Rannells, this unique audiobook delivers over four and a half hours of fascinating detail on John's approach to his work, with exclusive additional insights not present in the print edition.

Discover over 100 of the artist's outstanding sketches, drawings and paintings, plus the techniques and stories behind each, with advice on how to develop your own personal style of fantasy art. Listen as John reveals the rewarding journey into fantasy art, from the first steps of building a compelling portfolio to book illustration, graphic novels and the big screen.

The format of this audiobook differs from the print edition for a more engaging listening experience. Starting with The Text, John discusses his thoughts on the creative process and other elements of fantasy art. Following this, he presents the Case Studies and The Art, where you are invited to open the accompanying PDF so that you can visually follow the audio descriptions of each piece. Throughout the book you'll hear music and sound effects to enhance the experience, so the use of earphones is highly recommended. The accompanying PDF also leads you step-by-step through a range of specially commissioned drawing and painting demonstrations that reveal John's renowned artistic approach in action.

This audiobook will appeal to artists and fans of John Howe's work and all those who are intrigued by the fantasy art genre. It covers a wide range of subjects, beginning with the creative process, exploring where inspiration comes from, looking at narratives and themes, gathering and using reference material, organizing your work environment, working en plein air, protecting, storing and digitizing artwork, and specific techniques for drawing and painting, including John's unique way of holding the pencil.

John explores drawing and painting fantasy beings from initial inspiration and approaches to characters, symbolism and accoutrements; fantasy landscapes and architecture and balancing light and dark atmospheres; and the business of fantasy including designing for the big screen.

The afterword is read by Alan Lee, John's partner on the conceptual design for The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy and Oscar-winning illustrator.