BEHIND THE WORK
A stunning collection of paintings, manuscripts and sculptures that could have been made in the monasteries of the of Middle Ages or the libraries of Minas Tirith
Jay made his debut with his Tolkien inspired work in 2012 exhibiting at Return of the Ring. This was the largest ever Tolkien conference, held at Loughborough University and organised by The Tolkien Society. His unique and fresh approach to Middle-earth astounded everyone and from there he has exhibited globally. He exhibited at 2014 TheOneRing.net Oscar party in LA supporting Peter Jackson and the nomination for The Hobbit. He lectures frequently on his artwork, inspiration and techniques at the Tolkien Society annual meeting Oxonmoot in Oxford, most recently in 2021 sharing his passion and knowledge on the works of Pauline Baynes.
Jay has exhibited across The UK, Europe and the US. He has also given talks and lectures on his work and was guest of Honour at The Tolkien Lectures at Aachen University, Athenes and Italy. Many of his works can be seen in the Greissinger Museum in Switzerland and The Middle-earth exhibition at the Lucca, Italy.
There are currently three books by Jay Johnstone; Tolkienography Middle Earth inspired Manuscripts & Tolkienography, Isildur’s Bane with commentary by Thomas Honegger and Tolkienography, Bestiary of Dark creatures of Middle Earth with introduction by Brian Sibley.
Tolkienography, Isildur’s Bane is a deep immersion in Tolkien’s myth through the artwork of Jay’s Manuscripts, produced between 1999 and 2018. It provides the reader with a novel artistic rendering of Tolkien’s sub-creation, provoking new interpretations of its characters and essential themes.
“Johnstone’s artistic interpretation of Tolkien’s work warrants the same attention as that of Alan Lee or John Howe; his emphasis on characters rather than scenes or landscapes is itself a distinctive quality, but the iconography is what truly sets Johnstone’s work apart. Anyone with a broad interest in Tolkien’s work will find Tolkienography a pleasure to view, but those interested in Tolkien’s reliance on medieval and theological sources will find the book especially enriching. Indeed, this reader is unsure if one can properly interpret Tolkien’s work without referencing the iconic threads woven through the story; that Johnstone and Honegger have captured this thread so saliently makes Tolkienography perhaps one of the most interesting works on Tolkien published in many years.”
Lance A. Green
Journal of Inklings Studies University of St Andrews
EXHIBITIONS
2012 Return of the Ring, Loughborough UK
2013 Hobbit Con 2, Germany
2013 Oscars – Onering.net , US
2013 Tolkien Tag Barlow, Germany
2013 Tolkien Ting, Germany
2013 Greissinger Museum, Switzerland
2013 Oxonmoot , Lady Margret Hall Oxford, UK
2013 Ringcon, Germany
2013 Guest of honour – Tolkien Seminars Aachen Germany
2014 Oxonmoot, Lady Margret Hall Oxford, UK
2015 Hobbit Con 3, Germany
2015 Tolkien Weekend, Newcastle, UK
2015 Oxonmoot , Lady Margret Hall Oxford, UK
2016 LUSTRUMFEEST , HAGUE, Holland
2016 Hobbit Con 4, Germany
2016 Oxonmoot, St Anthony Oxford, UK
2016 Ringcon, Germany
2016 Tolkienshop, Holland
2017 Oxonmoot , St Anthony Oxford, UK
2017 Hull University Tolkien Centenary, UK
2018 Follycon, Harrogate, UK
2018 Oxonmoot, St Anthony Oxford, UK
2019 Tolkien 50th Anniversay Tolkien Society, Birmingham, UK
2020 Oxonmoot, Online
2021 Oxonmoot, St Annes Oxford, UK
2022 Guest of honour – Athens Tolkien Symposium II, Greece
2023 Oxonmoot, St Annes Oxford, UK
2023 Sentieri Tolkieniane, Turin Italy
2024 Oxonmoot, St Annes Oxford Bestiary of Dark Creatures, UK
2025 Edinburgh University Tolkien Society – Jays Tolkien, UK
COMING SOON
2025 Westmoot, Jays Tolkien // Lost PoemKansas USA
COMING SOON
2025 Oxonmoot, St Annes Oxford, UK
BOOK ILLUSTRATION & DESIGN
Tijaran Tales: SERIES 1-6 Francessca Barbini Cover Design by Jay Johnstone 2015 -19
Aragorn: J. R. R. Tolkien’s Undervalued Hero – Angela Nicholas Cover
Design by Jay Johnstone 2017
Steampunk Writers Around the World – Volume I, Cover Design and
page art by Jay Johnstone 2017
The Return Of The Ring Volume 1&2 Cover Design by Jay Johnstone
2017
Tolkienography Manuscripts of Middle Earth Jay Johnstone 2017
Tolkienography Isildur’s Bane Jay Johnstone 2019
Sub-creating Arda Dimitra Fimi and Thomas Honegger
Cover Art Jay Johnstone 2019
Tolkien’s Library: An Annotated Checklist by Oronzo Cilli & Tom
Shippey Cover Art Jay Johnstone 2019
On Eagle’s Wings – An Exploration of Eucatastrophe in Tolkien’s
Fantasy Anna Thayer Cover Design by Jay Johnstone 2019
The Sub-Genres of British Fantasy Literature AJ Dalton Cover Design
by Jay Johnstone 2019
Gears of Change (The Infinity Machine Series) Anthony Laken – Cover
Design by Jay Johnstone 2020
Death and Immortality in Middle-earth: Peter Roe Series XVII – Cover
Design by Jay Johnstone 2020
Tolkien and the Classical World Hamish Williams Cover Art Jay
Johnstone 2021
Osric The Extaordinary Owl Brian Sibley, Pauline Baynes &Wayne
Hammond Designed and produced by Jay Johnstone 2021
Friendship in The Lord of the Rings, by Cristina Casagrande.
Art Jay Johnstone 2022
Tweaking things a Little, byThomas Honegger
Art Jay Johnstone 2023
Tolkien’s Library: An Annotated Checklist ( UPDATED) by Oronzo Cilli & Tom
Shippey Cover Art Jay Johnstone 2023
Romantic Spririt in the works of JRR Tolkien by Edited by Will Sherwood and Julian Eilmann
Art Jay Johnstone 2023
The Way Light Bends, by Lorraine Wilson
Art Jay Johnstone 2023
Tolkien and the Gothic, by Edited by Will Sherwood
Art Jay Johnstone 2024
Tolkienography Bestiary of Middle Earth Jay Johnstone 2024
The Gospel of Gollum by Ivano Sassa Nelli
Art Jay Johnstone 2024
Gormenghast, by Mervyn Peake / Suntup publications.
Art Jay Johnstone 2025
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