I’d almost forgotten about this: back in the 1980s I decided that the BFS should produce an art portfolio and who else to highlight but Jim Pitts. Jim was a mainstay of the BFS, both as a fine artist and as editor of some of its earlier publications. So I asked Jim and he obliged with six A4 B&W plates illustrating classic horror tropes: Frankenstein’s Monster, Mr Hyde, Nosferatu, the lycanthrope , the resurrectionists, and the Jamesian ghost. The plates were presented in a blue card folder (with three further illustrations including Jack the Ripper) with an introduction by Stephen Jones, titled “The Pitt and the Pendulum”. Olde Horrors, produced by me, was published by the British Fantasy Society in 1989 in a limited edition of 500 copies.
It’s a pity that the society didn’t produce further such art portfolios, championing the best of UK illustrators. Anyway, I gather that they are quite rare, now. You can obtain a copy of this fine publication here for £12.00 – but I have seen it for over £20 on Amazon.
