Elfstone - Lord of the Rings

Thursday, June 9, 2011

[ElfstoneLARP] Mystical Realms Newsletter for June, 2011

Greetings!

And welcome to my newsletter for June, 2011! Please feel free to forward this to anyone you think would be interested in keeping up with me! To receive these newsletters regularly, please drop me an email or subscribe online from my website (http://www.JefMurray.com ) or at: http://groups.google.com/group/Mystical_Realms . Notices of events and items of interest are at the bottom of this email.

Pitchers ===============

The first ever Jef Murray/ALEP2 Fantasy Calendar continues selling fast! It has now been sold in the USA, Canada, England, Ireland, France, and the Netherlands. This 2012 calendar is loaded with painting images from Middle-earth, and it is being published in support of the upcoming ALEP2 (A Long Expected Party 2) gathering of Tolkien fans in Kentucky in September (see www.alep2.us). You can order your copy at www.JefMurray.com .

Ponderings ==============

"But that's absurd!"

The young man was furious. Across an ancient rosewood desk, the older gentleman smiled at him, but did not answer.

"It's absurd!" said the young man again. "If I want you to paint me a portrait, why should I have to tell you such things? I didn't come here for a psychotherapy session, nor for some New Age mumbo jumbo!"

Raphael Poole, the proprietor, leaned forward in his chair. "Mr. Thomas, I understand that this must strike you as odd. But you have to understand that Pendragon Portraits does not simply render the pigmented equivalent of a photograph. One of our paintings is a window into what awaits you…it is much more than `just' a portrait."

Miles Thomas had heard of Pendragon Portraits from his friend. He and Annie had worked together for years at the same financial firm. But six months before, Annie had abruptly quit her job and all but disappeared. When Miles chanced to see her again, he was astonished. His once obese co-worker had shed fifty pounds and was more lively and engaging than he could ever have believed possible. He asked her out for coffee, and she fairly bubbled over describing the changes that had been occurring in her life.

"I always knew there were more things out there for me to do," Annie had told him as they sipped their lattes, "But I never had the guts to step out and pursue them. I couldn't seem to get over my fears and simply walk away from my comforts and my job security."

Annie had gone on to tell him about Pendragon Portraits. "Their motto is `your dreams await you'," said Annie. "What an understatement! I went to see them because a girlfriend had recommended them, and during the weeks they were painting my portrait, it was like the whole world opened up for me! I remembered dreams I used to have…things I had always wanted to do when I `grew up', and I realized how distant those dreams had become. When I finally took my portrait home, it was like I held a beacon in my hands that I could come back to over and over again, something that beckoned me forward…."

Miles had, of course, been puzzled. He really didn't see how a painting, any painting, could have made such a difference. But he couldn't deny that she seemed a completely different person.

"Could I see the portrait sometime?" he had asked her.

"Well," said Annie, blushing, "I still don't like to show it to anyone…it's like my own lucky charm. Plus, I'm in the middle of moving to a new apartment, so I can't really have anyone over to see it, at least not yet. But, I'll tell you what; if you get a chance to visit the Pendragon studio, I'll let them know it's OK to show you a photo of it. They keep archives of all of their portraits. Very private, of course…but they'll share it with you if I tell them to."

So, Miles had looked up Pendragon Portraits on the internet. Their site was simple, but it contained beautifully painted landscape images throughout. "It's curious that they don't have any of their clients shown," Miles had thought, as he looked over the site. "It's just landscapes. I wonder why they don't post their finished portraits? Privacy issues, I suppose…."

Nevertheless, he had contacted the studio by email and had set up an appointment. He at least hoped to see Annie's portrait. And he thought, while he was there, perhaps he'd find out more about their work. Now, however, he sat in the office of the proprietor, flushed with annoyance.

Raphael Poole gazed at Miles for a few moments. "Perhaps we can discuss your own portrait further after you have had a chance to see Miss Gardener's. I believe it might help you to better understand what we can offer you."

"Fine," said Miles, still annoyed.

"Please follow me," said the older man, standing. He stepped to the back of the room and pushed aside the curtain that separated his office from the remainder of the studio.

Miles followed him into a vaulted room studded with lights, mirrors, stools, tables, and dark wooden wardrobes. The proprietor went to an oaken file cabinet and withdrew a portfolio. He laid it out on an adjacent table beneath several lamps; then he opened it, laying bare two enormous pages with many photographs of a single finished painting.

Miles looked at the images, and his jaw dropped. What he perceived was not so much a portrait as a scene from a fairy tale. Within a walled garden, a lithe young woman with curly golden hair was seated with a large book on her lap. Around her were several children who sat or lay or kneeled around her on a bright blue blanket. All the waifs were in rapt attention to the tale the young woman was reading, while above them the limbs of a cherry tree in full bloom rustled in the breeze, showering them with pale petals. Roses bloomed at the foot of the garden wall, and above all there soared a cerulean sky dappled with downy fair-weather clouds.

Miles looked more closely at the woman reading the book. It was Annie: not the Annie he had known at his job, but an Annie far more like the one he had had coffee with. She was slender and animated as she shared the story with the children surrounding her. And she was not dressed in modern clothes, but in a ruffled gown, brightly coloured, that Miles might have expected to see in a scene from Victorian times.

"You see," said the proprietor, "our portraits are less about who someone appears to be than who they are deep within.

"We all have dreams, Mister Thomas. What we try to capture in our work here is who you once wished to be, and perhaps may be again someday. For Miss Gardener, that wish was to reach out to children who are neglected and to whom she could offer love and support. I do not know how she will find a way to make that dream a reality, but I believe that it will yet come to pass.

"The question you must ask yourself now, should you wish us to create a Pendragon Portrait of your own, is the one I asked you before. What is it you dream of being, Mister Thomas? Who is beneath all the layers of respectability that you have accumulated…the person whom you have ignored over the years? Who is the person, if you will, that God has asked you to be? And how might we help you to once again make his acquaintance?"

…

"Have you seen it yet?" asked Annie.

Two months had passed, and during that time Miles saw Annie nearly every day. He had helped her move into her new apartment, and many of the hours when he was not at his own job or at the Pendragon studio he spent helping her sort through advertisements for possible employment. The week before, she had found an opening for an aid at a hospital for handicapped children. The position included training, and despite the fact that the woman in charge thought she was overqualified for the position, Annie's enthusiasm and her easy rapport with the children she met earned her an almost immediate job offer.

"No, I've not seen it yet," said Miles. "I decided I didn't want to see it until it was completely finished."

"But maybe you should see it alone first…in case you don't like it."

"No," said Miles, "I want you to be there, too. After all, you're responsible for my meeting Mr. Poole in the first place. Besides, I can't imagine not liking it, not after all of the discussions I've had with him."

"Have you told him about your own job hunt?" asked Annie.

"No, not yet. I guess I don't want to jinx it. Jobs in astronomy are so rare…I just don't want to get my hopes up too high, too soon."

"Well, something will turn up. I just know it will!" Annie smiled and squeezed his hand.

…

"I appreciate your confidence in us, Mr. Thomas," said Raphael Poole. "And I'm delighted to see you again, Miss Gardiner." He took her hand in his and kissed it.

"Come," he said, straightening. "Your portrait awaits you." He swept aside the curtain behind his desk once more and beckoned to them.

They stepped into the vaulted studio. A single draped canvas stood on an easel in the center of the room, with lights placed all around it. Raphael Poole stepped up to the canvas and withdrew the covering.

Miles and Annie stepped forward and gazed at a nighttime scene. A figure in medieval attire stood upon a parapet beneath a midnight sky. Stars and galaxies swam across an ultramarine heaven, and silhouettes of banners hung from the castle tower above. The man, none other than Miles himself, was gesturing at the grandeur of the vault above him, but his eyes were turned, not towards the planets, but towards the golden glow of a doorway at the edge of the canvas. And within the doorway stood the figure of Annie, hurrying out into the cool of the evening to share in his excitement.

Tears sprang into Miles' eyes as he looked at Annie in the painting, then at Annie herself, standing beside him. And he could not help but notice that her eyes, too, were brimming with tears.

"Is this your dream, Mr. Thomas?" asked the proprietor.

"Of course it is," replied Miles.

[The above tale, entitled "Pendragon", is dedicated to Lorraine, who has shared my own dreams for 29 wonderful years – Jef]

Prospects ===================

• A Long Expected Party 2 (ALEP2) will be held this coming September in Shaker Village, Kentucky. For those of you who missed the original ALEP in 2008, please consider joining us this time `round! This event is held in perhaps the most "Shire-like" place in the US, and we expect the camaraderie and fun enjoyed in 2008 will be a welcome respite from the world's woes. For more information, and to book your place in the festivities, see www.alep2.us).

• The Middle-earth Network ( http://middleearthnetwork.com ) is fast becoming the "Go To" place for news about Tolkien-related events and for discussions on the social network, http://mymiddle-earth.com/ . There are contests, postings of artwork and music, plus Middle Earth Radio. Most recently, Maerech of the Dunedain Radio held and interview with Tim, JP, David, Marc Gunn and myself on the original "A Long Expected Party (ALEP)" in 2008, as well as a discussion of how this year's event is expected to play out. Tune into the Middle-earth Network for rebroadcasts and other great news and features!

• The Return of the Ring 2012 (see http://www.returnofthering.org/) will be a huge Tolkien-themed conference and gathering at Loughborough University on 16-20th August, 2012. I am delighted to have been invited to appear as a guest of honour at the event and am looking forward not only to sharing my paintings and sketches, but also to participating in panels and presentations. You can book reservations now online.

• Tolkien biographer Joseph Pearce and I collaborated on an EWTN TV special on J.R.R. Tolkien that is now available on DVD. The production includes dozens of my illustrations of Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, and it focuses on the Catholicity of Tolkien's magnum opus. You can order the a DVD of the show at: http://www.ewtnreligiouscatalogue.com/TOLKIEN+S+LORD+OF+THE+RINGS+A+CATHOLIC+WORLD+VIEW/shop.axd/ProductDetails?x=0&y=0&keywords=Pearce+Tolkien&edp_no=22609

__._,_.___

Reply to sender | Reply to group | Reply via web post | Start a New Topic

Messages in this topic (1)

Recent Activity:

Visit Your Group

Switch to: Text-Only, Daily Digest • Unsubscribe • Terms of Use

__,_._,___

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

[ElfstoneLARP] Mystical Realms Newsletter for May, 2011

Greetings!

And welcome to my newsletter for May, 2011! Please feel free to forward this to anyone you think would be interested in keeping up with me! To receive these newsletters regularly, please drop me an email or subscribe online from my website (http://www.JefMurray.com ) or at: http://groups.google.com/group/Mystical_Realms . Notices of events and items of interest are at the bottom of this email.

Pitchers ===============

The first ever Jef Murray/ALEP2 Fantasy Calendar is now available! This 2012 calendar is loaded with painting images from Middle-earth, and was published in support of the upcoming ALEP2 (A Long Expected Party 2) gathering of Tolkien fans in Kentucky in September (see www.alep2.us). In addition, this calendar is the May 2011 "Calendar of the Month" at the Tolkien calendar collector's site, http://tolkiencalendars.com/.You can order your copy at www.JefMurray.com .

I have posted three new painting images on my website. These are "The Journey Home" and "Edoras", as well as an untitled image that will be used for a book cover illustration later this year. You can see all of these by going to http://www.JefMurray.com and clicking on the "Newest Works" button on the top of the page.

As always, these and all of the works in my online galleries are available as signed and numbered limited-edition Giclee prints.

Do let me know how these new images strike you!

Ponderings ==============

"Goodnight…"

"Goodnight."

"Don't go to sleep…."

"I won't."

This is the way my brother and I ended each day. Steve was my junior by three years, and the long shadows of evening always filled him with thoughts of phantoms floating through foyers and bogeys under the bed. Somewhere along the line he determined, or perhaps had been advised, that if his big brother stayed awake just long enough for him to fall asleep, the designs of the proverbial "creatures that go `bump' in the night" would be derailed, their campaigns corrupted by this metaphysical monkey-wrench being tossed into the works.

I never stayed awake, of course. And he was generally sound asleep faster than as I was, as far as I could tell. But it was the formula that was important…that incremental incantation that warded off wickedness and made all well.

This sort of magic is, I believe, fairly common in that mystical community known as the family. G.K. Chesterton declared it thus: "When we step into the family, by the act of being born, we do step into a world which is incalculable, into a world which has its own strange laws, into a world which could do without us, into a world we have not made. In other words, when we step into the family we step into a fairy-tale."

Most families of my acquaintance in childhood had, within the four walls of their multitudinous dominions, ongoing histories and traditions that would have rivaled any writings of Hans Christian Anderson or the Brothers Grimm. I knew of households with single children who themselves lived out almost Shirley Temple-esque tales of heroism, independence, and poignancy. Others harbored herds of heathens, each vying for their fair share of fun and attention. Plot lines were written and made manifest in the interactions of family members, neighbors, and pets at outings, in plays and music, in planning holidays and vacations; even during crises like sickness and natural disasters. And every day a new chapter in the ongoing saga would begin….

Although not all of us had what we would call idyllic childhoods, or even happy ones for that matter, most of us remember the years of growing up as a time of intense creativity, a time of excitement, a time of wonder. It is only when we leave home and strike out on our own that we seem to lose that sense that all will "come out right" that exists within the halls of home. It's only as young adults that fear sinks its deep roots into our innards and strips away the joy and trust that seems so natural in childhood.

Why is this? What changes when we step outside of our adolescent Arcadia and confront "the real world"?

For most of us, home meant safety and security. It did not mean that nothing would ever go awry; after all, we all have old road scars from falling off our bikes or memories of being struck down with chicken pox. But, what we had in childhood was a sense that we were part of something bigger…something that could be relied upon. We trusted that someone else – an older sibling, Uncle Chuck, or mom and dad – would be there for us if we needed them.

But stepping out into the "real world" often meant assuming that we were now, literally, "on our own". And putting aside the mendacity of that assumption, that belief itself festers into a "heart of darkness" within us that taints all that we do. With no one to look out for us and guide us, we make bad choices and the world, in its turn, "bites back". We get ourselves into trouble, or we have friends and co-workers who do so, and what we once thought of as a world full of infinite possibilities becomes one of treachery and danger…one that we have to "fix".

We come to distrust everything: public policies, possessions, people, and prayer. We angrily demand that the world assuage our fears, that our governments purge poverty and insure that no one ever goes hungry or is ever harmed by violence. We insist that everyone be treated equally and that no slight or even perception of slight be suffered. We expect everyone to own the same things, to think equally agreeable thoughts, to be kind and courteous to each other; and we bring the weight of the law and the military and the police down to make sure that all of this comes to pass.

And then…we find that the society we've created is a nightmare. We find ourselves living in a police state where everyone owns the same things because there is no other choice, where everyone spies on and sues everyone else, and where exceptional talents and skills are squashed so that no one feels inferior.

But this isn't at all what we wanted!

Before our fears got the best of us – before we left the enchanted realm of childhood – we were cherished for who we were, not for what we produced or how politically correct were our opinions. When we trusted that "all would be well", we knew that our transgressions could and would be forgiven; but we also knew that our contributions to other family members, to friends, and to the community, were treasured and celebrated.

In other words, with trust came freedom. With trust came happiness.

G.K. Chesterton said "Art consists of limitation. The most beautiful part of every picture is the frame." And the limitations we have in the family, as with the limitations laid upon us by Scripture, are what allow us the freedom to truly be whom we are meant to be. The only way that we, as adults, can ever find our way back to the enchantment of Elysium that so often accompanies youth, is to reclaim our limits – not for everyone else in society, thereby creating a hell on earth – but for ourselves.

Oddly enough, when we put limits on ourselves and expect the best of ourselves, when we begin to follow in the footsteps of the saints, we regain that most precious of commodities, trust: as well as its even more precious partner, peace. We realize that the world can be fearsome – life is an adventure, after all! – but, as in childhood, we once again perceive that there is always Someone else more powerful than us who is in control, and to Whom we can always turn when we are frightened by phantoms at night.

And that may be an encouraging thought….

Nai Eru lye mánata

Jef

Prospects ===================

• Tolkien biographer Joseph Pearce and I collaborated on an EWTN TV special on J.R.R. Tolkien that is now available on DVD. The production includes dozens of my illustrations of Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, and it focuses on the Catholicity of Tolkien's magnum opus. You can order the a DVD of the show at: http://www.ewtnreligiouscatalogue.com/TOLKIEN+S+LORD+OF+THE+RINGS+A+CATHOLIC+WORLD+VIEW/shop.axd/ProductDetails?x=0&y=0&keywords=Pearce+Tolkien&edp_no=22609

• A Long Expected Party 2 (ALEP2) will be held this coming September in Shaker Village, Kentucky. For those of you who missed the original ALEP in 2008, please consider joining us this time `round! This event is held in perhaps the most "Shire-like" place in the US, and we expect the camaraderie and fun enjoyed in 2008 will be a welcome respite from the world's woes. For more information, and to book your place in the festivities, see www.alep2.us).

• The Return of the Ring 2012 (see http://www.returnofthering.org/) will be a huge Tolkien-themed conference and gathering at Loughborough University on 16-20th August, 2012. I am delighted to have been invited to appear as a guest of honour at the event and am looking forward not only to sharing my paintings and sketches, but also to participating in panels and presentations. You can book reservations now online.

• The Middle-earth Network ( http://middleearthnetwork.com ) is fast becoming the "Go To" place for news about Tolkien-related events and for discussions on the social network, http://mymiddle-earth.com/ . Definitely worth taking a look!

__._,_.___

Reply to sender | Reply to group | Reply via web post | Start a New Topic

Greetings!

And welcome to my newsletter for February, 2011! Please feel free to forward this to anyone you think would be interested in keeping up with me! To receive these newsletters regularly, please drop me an email or subscribe online from my website (http://www.JefMurray.com ) or at: http://groups.google.com/group/Mystical_Realms . Notices of events and items of interest are at the bottom of this email.

Pitchers ===============

I have posted three new painting images on my website. These are "The Seat of Seeing", "Troll Fells", and "Dawn at Lake-town". All three are Tolkien-inspired works. You can see all of these by going to http://www.JefMurray.com and clicking on the "Newest Works" button on the top of the page.

As always, these and all of the works in my online galleries are available as signed and numbered limited-edition Giclee prints.

Do let me know how these new images strike you!

Ponderings ==============

The shovel rings as I thrust it into the ground. "Great", I think, "another *%$@!! tree root." I stop for a moment and rest against the spade. Its handle has become soft with age; the lace tracery of the ash tree's rings still visible in the muted gold of the handle. It's a beautiful thing…a fact I've forgotten during my single-minded assaults on the soil.

Spring has not yet sprung, but she rustles beneath leafy carpets: crocus buds burst and jonquils jostle. And here I stand by our new statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary, listening to the breezes rattle the remaining winter leaves and watching wayward waifs bicycle by.

"Whatcha doin'?" asks the little girl from next door. Isabella is about eight. She has Talia, age 3, in tow.

"Planting roses," say I.

"That's the biggest hole I've ever seen!!" Isabella says. "Why is it so big?!" Talia looks wide-eyed at the hole; it has clearly taken on added import with Isabella's proclamation.

"It has to be big so that I can fit the rosebush in it." I point to the peat pot on the ground beside me.

"Can we help?" Isabella asks. She reaches for the axe I've been using to chop up the tree roots.

"Not with that," I say, "That axe is pretty sharp. But, maybe you can help me water the roses once they're planted, OK? Maybe a little later…."

"OK! I'm good at watering!" says Isabella.

The girls wander off. Talia looks back wistfully at the axe.

I return to hacking tree roots. "This would be a great penance for someone", I think. I wonder how many tree roots would take the place of a single Hail Mary in the economy of Elysium? Or would it be the other way 'round? Would a single tree root be the purgatorial peer of divers devout prayers?

I know why I'm thinking this way. Lent approacheth. Ruminations will arrest and musings manacle me during the whole of the coming desert season. I'll ponder angels on pinheads and the significance of sacramentals throughout these forty days, trying to make sense of a deliberately-chosen dearth.

Rather like the process of producing a painting, Lent always presents itself to me as a journey. It has settled start and stop times, and you know that you'll likely, God willing, get to "the other side". But the passage is the thing…the actual movement of the self through a sieve of solitude, even if that solitude is sacramental and cerebral rather than spatial.

This is what it means to be in the desert.

When I work on a painting, I leave a scattering of studies and sketches in my wake. They are like breadcrumbs strewn on a forest floor; like the thread given Theseus by Ariadne to help him escape the labyrinth. The sketches, and even the paintings that result, are what I have to show for all of the toil, all of the trouble that I take.

But what will mark my passage through Lent? And what is the point of it all, really?
I return to the tree roots. Large root links like bratwurst pile up beside the hole. Finally, I get past the worst and the hole becomes deep enough for the rosebush. I press the plant's root ball firmly into fragrant loam. I wipe the sweat away from my eyes and notice that the thin sunlight is now warm on my face. Birds are singing everywhere…robins roar and cardinals croon. They've been kicking up a real fuss for the last two weeks…ever since the last freeze, I guess. But I'm just now really noticing….

"Maybe things are getting better," I think. "Maybe the worst of winter is finally
past." I rake black earth around the root ball and sit down to catch my breath.

This rosebush may be blooming by the time my Lenten journey is over, but only if it gets the care it needs, and only if I watch it and protect it from the slugs and the spring thunderstorms. And I guess that's as close to understanding what Lent is all about as I'll ever get; it's got something to do with protecting what is precious inside of us so that it, too, can blossom.

The two girls return. "Is it time to water the roses yet?" asks Isabella.

"Yes, I think it is," I say, "High time."

Prospects ===================

• The first ever Jef Murray/ALEP2 Fantasy Calendar will be available soon! This 2012 calendar is a celebration of Middle-earth and will feature color images from my own collection. It should be available by, or soon after, March 25, 2011. Look for ordering information soon!

• A new EWTN TV special has been completed on J.R.R. Tolkien. Featuring Joseph Pearce, this production will also include dozens of my illustrations of Tolkien's world. The air dates for the show, which should be accessible worldwide, are April 6 at 10pm EST, April 8 at 1pm EST, and April 9 at 5pm EST.

• The Return of the Ring 2012 (see http://www.returnofthering.org/) will be a huge Tolkien-themed conference and gathering at Loughborough University on 16-20th August, 2012. I am delighted to have been invited to appear as a guest of honour at the event and am looking forward not only to sharing my paintings and sketches, but also to participating in panels and presentations. You can book reservations now online.

• I have signed copies both of "The Magic Ring" by Fouque and "Black & White Ogre Country" by Hillary Tolkien available for sale. If interested, you can contact me directly via Facebook or at my website (www.JefMurray.com)

• For folks interested in my original paintings and sketches, please take a look at the ADC Art and Books online catalog at www.adcbooks.co.uk. It features Tolkien-themed works by Ted Nasmith, Peter Pracownik, and myself. In addition, you'll find collectible items (e.g. Black & White Ogre Country: The Lost Tales of Hilary Tolkien) and rare books featured in the catalog and on the website.

• In addition to the ADC Art and Books catalog, you can find more Tolkien and non-Tolkien themed works of mine, including both prints and original paintings and sketches, online at www.JefMurray.com .