A week or so ago, we reported that Dean O’Gorman was about to debut a an exhibition of his artwork and photography in Wellington at the PageBlackie Gallery.

Now PageBlackie has uploaded a small sample. They really are beautiful pieces of art, and well worth a look. You’ll also probably note the resemblance of some pieces to certain actors from The Hobbit.

O’Gorman dressed and set up the shots himself… [roping] in friends to play the soldiers, and fellow cast members from The Hobbit. (One features British actor Adam Brown who plays the dwarf Ori, and another has Luke Evans, who plays Bard the Bowman).

O’Gorman, who fell in love with photography at school, was a big fan of Vietnam War photographers including Larry Burrows and Don McCullin, as well as other war photographers such as the legendary Robert Capa.

“They were beautiful images and I loved how they made me feel. I loved the rawness and the humanness that was captured. I thought wouldn’t it be cool to try and stage something that could allow you to potentially feel something similar, but wasn’t actually real?

“I’m not trying to trick anybody, but I’m just trying to play with the idea of how do you feel about something that is not real but is made to seem real?. Movies do it all the time, but a lot of times in photography I find it’s approached with quite an obvious parody, or quite an obvious irony, and I wanted to try to be a bit more sincere.”

Thanks to Ringer Dragonslayer731 for the heads-up.

[Gallery] | [Stuff.co.nz feature]

Luke Evans, the actor playing Bard the Bowman in The Hobbit, has tweeted that he is starting his final four days of shooting on the film tomorrow.

Does this mean that the entire primary shoot could be finished mid-next week? Is it more evidence that points to a Peter Jackson appearance at Comic-Con? Or is it just that Evans is wrapping up his role?

Let the speculation begin!

Popular webzine io9 says that 2012 is the year for fantasy and urban-fantasy at Comic-Con. And, with the line-up featuring The Hobbit, Breaking Dawn, ParaNorman, The Legend of Korra, Game Of Thrones, and True Blood, Teen Wolf, 666 Park Avenue, Supernatural and Beauty And The Beast (plus much more), it’s a proposition that’s difficult to dispute. There’s also this paragraph buried near the bottom of the article:

True, Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel is rumored to be revealing a trailer, but what is a short trailer compared to actual panel time (and footage) with Peter Jackson?

Now, I don’t think I’ve seen any official word that Jackson will or won’t be in attendance. But I think this is some good guesswork (or perhaps an inside tip).

Consider: the wrap party for the Hobbit is on July 7 (Connolly is startlingly specific compared to McKellen’s much more vague comment that filming would conclude by the end of July. Comic-con starts July 11. Do you think the boss of the show wouldn’t attend the big promotional launch of his film at one of the world’s key fantasy-sf conventions?

[More] | [TORn’s SDCC Panel]

Ringer Elpidha tells us that Craig Ferguson interviewed Elijah Wood last night on the Late Late Show about the show Wilfred. The Hobbit wrap party came up in the chat, but Wood didn’t spill any more details about the production.

Ferguson’s interview with Wood begins roughly 19 minutes into the show.

[Watch on CBS] | [Watch on Youtube]

We are now finally able to take deposits and start booking excited fans to join TheOneRing.net in New Zealand for what promises to be a party to remember. You will find all the details and proposed schedule for the tour here TORn Hobbit premiere tour. Please do take the time to read the schedule and all the terms before committing to the Non-Refundable Deposit of$300 per person. Once you’ve read through everything, asked all the questions you need to ask, you may fill out the Registration Form Space is limited, so this will have to be on a First Come, First Served basis. And if we are unable to accommodate you on the trip, you will be contacted and offered the choice of a refund or being put on the waitlist. You may email me at Garfeimao@TheOneRing.net or Cathy.U@Travelstoreusa.com

Ian McKellen. Photo by Brendon Doran. This account of Ian McKellen’s one-man-show the other night at the Opera House in Wellington in aid of the earthquake-struck Isaac Theatre Royal in Christchurch features some glorious photography of the performance.

We mingled with the Hobbit cast, Martin Freeman expressing his general surprise at what was happening “We had no idea about this” (though with a grin on his face) and everyone then crowded in around Ian as he explained what would happen next.

Photo to the right by Brendon Doran. See bigger, better versions by following the link below.

[More]

Addendum: there’s also this review over at The Dominion Post.