J.R.R. Tolkien first discovered Pauline Baynes, one of his favorite illustrators, after she sent some of her clever reinterpretations of marginalia from the Luttrell Psalter, a medieval illuminated manuscript. So charmed was Tolkien by Baynes' goof on medieval art that he requested Baynes as the replacement illustrator on his fable Farmer Giles of Ham, and she went on to illustrate many scenes from Middle Earth.

It seems appropriate, then that artist Jian Guo marries Tolkien's works with an updated illuminated style. His colorful series of thick-lined illustrations of the adventures of Bilbo Baggins and the War of the Ring in a way that captures the mythological aspect of Tolkien's tales. His pieces call to mind those illuminated manuscripts as well as the brilliant colors of stained glass windows.

Guo's deviantART gallery shows off his versatility; in addition to these pieces, he also creates photorealistic and storybook illustrations. He's also applied this illuminated look to his World of Warcraft fanart and the Avengers.