Brian Froud | |
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![]() Froud at the 2012 New York Comic Con | |
Born | 1947 (age 75–76) [1] |
Education | Maidstone College of Art |
Known for | Illustration, painting, and conceptual design. |
Spouse | |
Children | Toby Froud |
Awards |
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Brian Froud (born 1947) [1] is an English fantasy illustrator and conceptual designer. He is most widely known for his 1978 book Faeries with Alan Lee, and as the conceptual designer of the Jim Henson films The Dark Crystal (1982) and Labyrinth (1986). [8] [9] According to Wired , Froud is "one of the most pre-emiminent visualizers of the world of faerie and folktale". [10]
Most recently, Froud developed the 2019 streaming television series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance .
Froud was born in Winchester, England in 1947. [2] An only child, he grew up in rural Hampshire [11] before moving to Kent. [12] In 1967 he enrolled as a painter at Maidstone College of Art, where he graduated with a first class honors diploma in Graphic Design in 1971. [13]
After graduating, Froud spent five years working as a commercial illustrator in Soho, London before moving to Chagford, Devon in 1975. [13] [14] Between 1972 and 1976, he illustrated four books by children's author Margaret Mahy [15] and Are All the Giants Dead? by Mary Norton. [16] In 1976, Froud was featured in Once Upon a Time: Some Contemporary Illustrators of Fantasy, a survey of modern British illustrators. [17] In 1977, an anthology of his artwork, The Land of Froud, was published. [18]
In collaboration with his friend and fellow artist Alan Lee, Froud created the 1978 book Faeries , an illustrated compendium of faerie folklore. [14] Faeries reached number four on the New York Times Best Sellers list, [19] [20] and by 2003 had sold over five million copies. [21]
Froud's artwork in Once Upon a Time and The Land of Froud brought him to the attention of Jim Henson, who sought out Froud to collaborate on his all-puppetry film The Dark Crystal . [22] [23] Froud served as the conceptual designer of The Dark Crystal, released in 1982. The same year, his concept art for the film was published in the companion book The World of the Dark Crystal . [24] Froud was also the conceptual designer for Henson's next feature film, Labyrinth , released in 1986, [25] as well as for the pilot episode of Henson's television series The Storyteller , first aired in 1987. [26] Following his collaborations with Henson, Froud's filmography continued; as a designer for the 1989 Japanese animated film Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland ; [27] as a visual consultant on the 2000 American animated film The Life & Adventures of Santa Claus [13] and P. J. Hogan’s 2003 live-action film Peter Pan; [28] and as a concept artist on the 2016 Disney film Pete's Dragon . [29] Froud returned to working with the Jim Henson Company as the primary conceptual designer of the 2019 Netflix series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , a prequel to The Dark Crystal. [30] [31]
In the late 1980s, Froud formed an artistic-literary partnership with Terry Jones, who was a screenwriter on Labyrinth. Together they produced The Goblins of Labyrinth (1986), a companion book containing Froud's concept art for the film, [32] [33] and subsequently a number of non-Labyrinth-related books about fairies and goblins. Their Lady Cottington series parodied the Cottingley Fairies phenomenon. [1] For his artwork in the first book of the series, Lady Cottington's Pressed Fairy Book (1994), Froud won the Hugo Award for Best Original Artwork [3] and the Chesley Award for Best Interior Illustration. [4]
In 1991, Froud created over 50 paintings and drawings for his Faerielands series, a collaborative project in which he invited four fantasy authors — Charles de Lint, Patricia A. McKillip, Terri Windling and Midori Snyder — to choose their favourite of his pieces and write stories to go with them, based on the premise that "Faerie, inextricably bound as it is to nature and natural forces, is gravely threatened by the ecological crises that human beings have brought to our world”. [34] [35] The resulting novels were to be published by Bantam Books. [36] However, only de Lint's The Wild Wood and McKillip's Something Rich and Strange were published in 1994 under the banner "Brian Froud's Faerielands" before the project was cancelled. [37] [38]
His artwork has been exhibited in the United Kingdom and the United States. [2] By 2003, Froud had sold over eight million large-format books of his paintings of fairies. [21]
Froud is married to Wendy Froud (née Midener), a puppet-maker and sculptor whom he met at Jim Henson Studios in 1978 while working on The Dark Crystal. [13] The couple married on 31 May 1980, in Chagford. [39] [40] Their son Toby (born 1984) portrayed the infant of the same name in Labyrinth at the age of one, [41] and later became a puppeteer and creature fabricator, [42] working alongside his parents on The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance as design supervisor. [43]
Through his son, Froud has one grandson, Sebastian. [44]
Froud's artwork frequently draws upon fairy tales and European folklore. His paintings of fairies are known for recontexualising Victorian and Edwardian-era beliefs about fairies. [1] [45]
Among Froud's major influences are the 19th and early 20th-century illustrators Arthur Rackham, Edmund Dulac, [11] [24] and Richard Dadd. [46] Froud cites the early influence of Rackham, "in particular, [Rackham's] drawings of trees that had faces", as sparking his interest in illustrating fairy tales, and describes having had a love of nature from childhood that has informed his style. [47] He is frequently inspired by the landscape of Dartmoor. [30] Other influences Froud cites include the Robinson brothers (Thomas, Charles and William), [46] the Pre-Raphaelites, William Morris and Northern European art from the 1500s and 1600s. [47] He was fascinated by Greek, Druid, Celtic and German 15th-century history and mythology. [46] Froud's work has also been influenced by Arthurian legend, "com[ing] from Glastonbury as a sacred centre". [48] Jeremiah Horrigan of the Poughkeepsie Journal wrote that Froud's style "echoes not only the great 19th century illustrators he reveres, but also harbors a wealth of elements ranging from Medieval to ancient Celtic and Nordic folk art." [11]
In 1979, Froud was nominated for the British Fantasy Award for Best Artwork for Plate 12 of his 1977 book, The Land of Froud. [49] For his 1978 book with Alan Lee, Faeries, Froud won second place in the 1979 Locus Award for Best Art Book [50] (Froud has been a runner up four times through to 2015). [51] Faeries was also nominated for the 1979 Balrog Award for Best Professional Publication. [52] The same year, Froud was also runner up for the Locus Award for Best Artist (he has been a runner up four times through to 1999). [51]
Four years later, Froud was a nominee at the 1983 Hugo Awards in the category of Best Non-Fiction Book for The World of the Dark Crystal , for which Froud was the illustrator in a partnership with writer J. J. Llewellyn. [53] The World of the Dark Crystal won fifth place in the 1983 Locus Award for Best Nonfiction/Reference Book. [54] The same year, Froud was also nominated for the Balrog Award for Best Artist. [55]
Froud was honoured by the World Fantasy Convention with a nomination for the World Fantasy Award for Best Artist in 1991, and again four years later. [56]
In 1995, Froud won the Hugo Award for Best Original Artwork for his illustrations in Lady Cottington's Pressed Fairy Book, a collaboration with writer Terry Jones. [3] The book also won the Chesley Award for Best Interior Illustration, and Froud was also nominated that year for the Chesley Award for Artistic Achievement. [4] For The Wise Woman, Froud won a certificate in the 1995 Spectrum Award for Best Book. [57]
For his illustrations in Terry Windling's novel, The Wood Wife , Froud was nominated for the BSFA Award for Best Artwork in 1998. [58] The following year, for his artwork in Good Faeries/Bad Faeries, another collaboration with Windling, Froud won his second Chesley Award for Best Interior Illustration [5] (he has been a finalist six times through to 2008). [51]
In 2001, Froud, along with his wife, was awarded the Inkpot Award. [6] Froud received a lifetime achievement award from the New York Society of Illustrators Museum in 2011. [59]
Year | Award | Category | Work(s) | Result |
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1987 | BAFTA Film Award | Best Special Visual Effects | Labyrinth – with Roy Field, George Gibbs and Tony Dunsterville | Nominated [60] |
1987 | Saturn Award | Best Costume Design | Labyrinth – with Ellis Flyte | Nominated [61] |
2020 | Concept Art Award | Lifetime Achievement | The Dark Crystal , Labyrinth | Won [7] |
Labyrinth is a 1986 musical fantasy film directed by Jim Henson with George Lucas as executive producer. Based on conceptual designs by Brian Froud, the film was written by Terry Jones, and many of its characters are played by puppets produced by Jim Henson's Creature Shop. The film stars Jennifer Connelly as 16-year-old Sarah and David Bowie as Jareth, the Goblin King. In Labyrinth, Sarah embarks on a quest to reach the center of an enormous, otherworldly maze to rescue her infant half-brother Toby, whom she wished away to Jareth.
The Dark Crystal is a 1982 dark fantasy film directed by Jim Henson and Frank Oz. It stars the voices of Stephen Garlick, Lisa Maxwell, Billie Whitelaw, Percy Edwards, and Barry Dennen. The film was produced by ITC Entertainment and The Jim Henson Company and distributed by Universal Pictures. The plot revolves around Jen and Kira, two Gelflings on a quest to restore balance to the world of Thra and overthrow the evil, ruling Skeksis by restoring a powerful broken Crystal.
Alan Lee is an English book illustrator and film conceptual designer. He is best known for his artwork inspired by J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novels, and for his work on the conceptual design of Peter Jackson's film adaptations of Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film series.
Michael Whelan is an American artist of imaginative realism. For more than 30 years, he worked as an illustrator, specializing in science fiction and fantasy cover art. Since the mid-1990s, he has pursued a fine art career, selling non-commissioned paintings through galleries in the United States and through his website.
James C. Christensen was an American illustrator and painter of religious and fantasy art.
Janet Inglis "Janny" Wurts is an American fantasy novelist and illustrator. She has written several standalone novels and series, including the Wars of Light and Shadow, The Cycle of Fire trilogy and the internationally best-selling Empire trilogy that she co-authored with Raymond E. Feist. Her short story collection That Way Lies Camelot was nominated for the British Fantasy Award in 1995. She often illustrates her own books, and has won Chesley Awards for her artwork.
Charles Vess is an American fantasy artist and comics artist who has specialized in the illustration of myths and fairy tales. His influences include British "Golden Age" book illustrator Arthur Rackham, Czech Art Nouveau painter Alphonse Mucha, and comic-strip artist Hal Foster, among others. Vess has won several awards for his illustrations. Vess' studio, Green Man Press, is located in Abingdon, VA.
Terri Windling is an American editor, artist, essayist, and the author of books for both children and adults. She has won nine World Fantasy Awards, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award, and the Bram Stoker Award, and her collection The Armless Maiden appeared on the short-list for the James Tiptree, Jr. Award.
Holly Black is an American writer and editor best known for her children's and young adult fiction. Her most recent work is the New York Times bestselling young adult Folk of the Air series. She is also well known for The Spiderwick Chronicles, a series of children's fantasy books she created with writer and illustrator Tony DiTerlizzi, and her debut trilogy of young adult novels officially called the Modern Faerie Tales. Black has won an Eisner Award, a Lodestar Award, an Award, a Nebula Award, and a Newbery honor.
The World of the Dark Crystal is a companion book written in conjunction with the film The Dark Crystal. The book was designed and edited by Rupert Brown, with illustrations by Brian Froud—who was the conceptual designer for the film—and text by J. J. Llewellyn. It was originally published in 1982 by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. In 2003 the book was re-released by Harry N. Abrams, Inc.
Toby Froud is an English-American artist, special effects designer, puppeteer, filmmaker, and performer. He rose to prominence for his role as the baby who was wished away to the goblins in the 1986 Jim Henson film Labyrinth. He became a puppeteer, sculptor, and fabricator for film, television, and theatre. He wrote and directed the 2014 fantasy short film Lessons Learned. He was the design supervisor of the 2019 streaming television series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance.
The 53rd World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon), also known as Intersection, was held on 24–28 August 1995 at the SEC Centre and the nearby Moat House Hotel in Glasgow, United Kingdom. Evening social events also took place at the Central and Crest Hotels.
Wendy Froud is an American doll-artist, sculptor, puppet-maker, and writer. She is best known for her work fabricating Yoda for the 1980 film Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, for which she has been called "the mother of Yoda", and creatures for the Jim Henson films The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth.
Jareth is a fictional character and the main antagonist of the 1986 fantasy film Labyrinth. Portrayed by David Bowie, Jareth is the powerful and enigmatic king of the goblins to whom protagonist Sarah Williams wishes away her baby brother Toby. Jareth gives Sarah thirteen hours to retrieve the baby from his castle at the centre of an enormous labyrinth, during which time he sets obstacles in her path and tries to entice her away from her quest.
Lessons Learned is a 2014 fantasy short film written and directed by Toby Froud. The film's visuals were achieved widely through the use puppetry and animatronics.
The Labyrinth of Jareth Masquerade Ball, shortened to LOJ or simply known as the Labyrinth Masquerade Ball, is an annual masquerade ball and cosplay event in Los Angeles, California. The ball was first held in 1997.
Something Rich and Strange is a fantasy novel by Patricia A. McKillip written for Brian Froud's Faerielands series under the inspiration of Froud's fantasy artwork. Its title is derived from a line in Shakespeare's The Tempest. The book was first published in hardcover by Bantam Spectra in November 1994, with a trade paperback edition following from ibooks in October 2005. It was later incorporated into the author's collection Dreams of Distant Shores, issued by Tachyon Publications in ebook and trade paperback in May 2016 and June 2016, respectively.
Faeries is a book written and illustrated by English artists Brian Froud and Alan Lee. An illustrated compendium of faerie mythology, legends and folklore, the book explores the history, customs and habitat of faeries in the manner of a field guide, complete with hand annotations.
Sarah Williams is a fictional character and the protagonist of the 1986 fantasy film Labyrinth. Portrayed by Jennifer Connelly, Sarah is an imaginative teenager who wishes for the goblins from her favourite story to take away her baby brother Toby. When her inadvertent wish comes true, she must solve an enormous otherworldly labyrinth in thirteen hours and rescue Toby from the castle of Jareth, the Goblin King.
Labyrinth: Coronation is a 12-issue comic book limited series based on Jim Henson's 1986 fantasy film Labyrinth. Published by Archaia Entertainment, it was written by Simon Spurrier and illustrated by Daniel Bayliss, with cover art by Fiona Staples. The first issue was released in February 2018 and new installments were released on a near-monthly basis until the series' conclusion in March 2019. The series has since been collected in three volumes in trade paperback.
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