The Brothers Hildebrandt

Tim (left) with Greg, in the Inside Tolkien's The Hobbit documentary

Greg (born Gregory Jr.) and Tim Hildebrandt, or The Brothers Hildebrandt, were American twin brothers known for illustrating J.R.R. Tolkien's world of Middle-earth, in addition to other fantasy, science fiction, and comic book subjects, and children's literature. They were born in January 1939, and Tim lived until June 2006, while Greg has continued their work thence.

Of Middle-earth, the Brothers have primarily depicted characters and creatures, such as dragons and members of the Fellowship. With a painting style drawn much from Disney's early animated films, the brothers began in their forties a tradition of illustrating Tolkien calendars, starting with Ballantine Books' 1976 J.R.R. Tolkien Calendar, the second in the series to use illustrations by someone other than Tolkien. After two more consecutive Ballantine calendars which brought their art great visibility among Tolkien fandom, they would produce their Tolkien-themed calendars much later, in 2001, for the years 2002 - 2006, published by Ronnie Sellers and Entertainment Calendar LLC. In 1979, an exhibition and analysis of their Tolkien art was published as the book The Art of the Brothers Hildebrandt, by Ian Summers.

In 2001, another book was released, overseen by Greg, documenting their art and their creative processes, entitled Greg and Tim Hildebrandt: The Tolkien Years.

Some of the brothers' art and commentary are featured in Kultur Video's 2003 documentary, Secrets of Middle-earth: Inside Tolkien's The Hobbit.

In 1992, Tim Hildebrandt was awarded Best Artist by the World Fantasy Convention.

External links

• Official website
• Tolkien products at Spiderwebart Gallery
• Middle-earth art slideshow, with descriptions, at TimHildebrandt.net
• Brothers Hildebrandt at Wikipedia

See also

• Darrell Sweet
• Michael Hague
• Inger Ederfeldt