The Magnificent - original upcycled vintage painting

"O Smaug, how shall we describe you? Smaug the Tremendous, the Chiefest and Greatest of Calamities, the Mighty. Smaug the Unassessably Wealthy, the Impenetrable, the Terrible. Your Magnificence, Smaug the Dreadful, Old Worm, Smaug the Golden… The Dragon." --Bilbo

With so many names to capture the essence of the worm that infamously smote the dwarven kingdom of Erebor, I wanted to capture a moment when the young beast was flying over his dominion in search of prey. This is a very small painting, and the size of the dragon as you step back could be mistaken for a predatory bird soaring above. 

As Tolkien describes in his stories, Smaug the terrible descended on the dwarves of the Lonely Mountain one evening in the year 2077 of the Third Age. The dwarves were utterly decimated.  Years later they would return with a thief to reclaim what they lost beneath the mountain. And we all know what precious object came to Bilbo in the depths of the mountain. 

The original vintage painting is a good example of mass produced art of the time using the same formula (palette knife technique with trees and water.) But it had lovely colours and some surprise details, so was a more thoughtful rendition of that style. 

"The Magnificent"

altered painting by Heather Castles
19.5x 24.5cm (7.5x 9.5inch) painting on paper board
33x 38cm (13x 15inch) antique frame