Brian Froud - Artist
Brian Froud was born in Winchester, England in 1947 and now lives in Devon with his wife, Wendy Froud, and their son, Toby.
The Frouds are widely known in the world of fantasy for their artistic endevours that bring the world of fae to the rest of us. Brian primarily works in acrylics though he will use other media, Wendy is known for her dollmaking, and Toby is now involved in puppetry and acting.
Brian's work has been used for inspiration of such films as The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth. For Labyrinth he was also a collaborator on the movie.
He has published numerous books including Faeries, in collaboration with Alan Lee. Other art books include Good Fairies/Bad Fairies. One of his recent books was "The Runes of Elfland" with whom he worked with writer Ari Beck. Other books include Lady Cottington's Pressed Fairy Book.
When in college Brian came across a book illustrated by Arthur Rackham. An example of his work is shown below:
The work of Rackham rekindled the desire in Froud to study the fairy tales of Britain along with the tales of other lands. What he found was there were common roots in the beliefs of all lands as shown in their fairy tales and stories.
After college he was a commercial artist for five years but continued his study of traditions and stories while developing his own uniques style in his mythic art.
In the mid-seventies he moved to Dartmoor and lived there with artist Alan Lee and Marja Lee Kruyt. Brian worked with Alan on the book Faeries which illustrated British faery lore which eventually became a best seller worldwide.
It was the book Faeries that drew the attention of filmmaker Jim Henson who hired Brian to work on The Dark Crystal and The Labyrinth. On the set, Brian met Wendy and by the time the second movie was made they were married and had their son Toby, who played the baby in Labyrinth that was kidnapped.
For more information on Brian Froud CLICK HERE.