And just like that, we’re on to Round Three of Middle-earth March Madness 2025: The Art of Middle-earth. From 64 works of art which started in the four brackets, now we’re down to the Sweet Sixteen; and in this round, you only have three days to vote. Round Three voting is open now!
Round Two for the most part had pretty clear winners in the match ups. The one VERY close battle was between Angelo Montanini’s Radagast the Magician and Turner Mohan’s Lúthien and Morgoth. These two very different works were in a stalemate for most of the round. A brief flurry of votes in the final hour saw them continue to swap places for the lead, until finally, when voting closed, Mohan’s extraordinary work come out the victor – but by just ONE VOTE!
One perhaps surprising departure in Round Two was John Howe! His Barrels out of Bond was narrowly defeated by Kip Rasmussen’s Thingol and Melian, which claimed 56% of the vote. Both are gorgeous pieces; it just shows how difficult it is to choose when all these artists are so talented, and their visions are so different. It now looks like Alan Lee and Donato Giancola may meet in the Elite Eight, to decide the overall winner in the ‘Landscapes’ bracket; but first, they have to make it through this next round!
Some thoughts from staffer Madeye Gamgee on the contest so far:
In the Sweet 16, as far as book “Conferences” go, we have representation from:
- The Silmarillion — 4
- The Hobbit — 3
- The Lord of the Rings – 9
We had some very familiar artists get knocked out of the tournament this round, including John Howe, Justin Gerard, Jerry VanderStelt, and Colleen Doran. Surviving are newer artists like Anna Lee, Edvige Faini, Soni Alcorn-Fender, and Eric Velhagen. Art from titans Donato Giancola and Alan Lee may be heading to a face-off in the Landscape finals. Can Ted Nasmith’s work prevail over less well-known but formidable competing artwork? Will the comfort of David Wenzel’s classic Hobbit graphic novel be enough to overcome what may be the most diverse group of competing artwork in the Groups/Montages region? It’s not getting any easier!
Take a look at the fours brackets as they now stand; which masterpiece do you think is en route to becoming to champion for 2025? As always, we encourage you to take some time enjoying the art, and perhaps follows some links to check out other works by the artists, before you place your next votes. (You can also always access the earlier rounds at the voting link; so all these incredible pieces are still there for your viewing pleasure!)
Decisions are getting harder, as the field narrows. How you make your choice is up to you!
How does it work, you ask? Simple! Click on the button below. This will take you to the voting site, where you can view the entire bracket, and also view individual works in all their glory (and details of the artist). Place your votes for Round Three: Sweet Sixteen!
You have until the end of the day Saturday March 29th to vote in Round Two; on Sunday 30th we’ll open voting for Round Four! That Sunday, we’ll also have a very special livestream at 3pm PST, when none other than Ted Nasmith will join us, to discuss his ‘The Kinslaying of Alqualonde’, which features in the ‘Story Moments’ bracket – and he may even share some preliminary sketches with us! We hope you’ll join us for that, as you make decisions on the Elite Eight round; but first, go and examine the Sweet Sixteen! Vote well!
Several strongholds of elves and men are besieged while Frodo and Sam are trudging laboriously through Mordor to Mount Doom. In particular, Lothlórien repels three such assaults before Galadriel and Celeborn finally lead a counter-offensive against Dol Guldur. 
A little earlier, Hall of Fire regulars and guests concluded a lively discussion about the enigma of Idril and Tuor. For those who missed it, here’s a log to peruse. Next weekend, we’ll be returning to The Two Towers and chatting about the chapter “Treebeard”.