Monday, October 10, 2011

Bernie Wrightson - The Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio, 1976

Bernie Wrightson - Unpublished "Pit and The Pendulum" Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio Painting (1976).

"One of the first paintings completed for the Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio was 'The Pit and the Pendulum'. Wrightson experimented using an impasto technique -- painting with very thick, broad strokes. The colors were very dark, being made up primarily of blacks, and browns. When the painting was finished, it was then varnished with a high gloss to protect it. The result, when lit by the printers' lights was a glare making it impossible to reproduce. When informed of the technical limitations of his painting, Wrightson painted a second version which was dominated by great areas of dark green. Wrightson's original idea for the 'Pendulum' painting can be seen in the photograph of Jeff Jones as the hapless victim of the Inquisition. Wrightson painted Jones chained to a cold concrete slab awaiting the blade of the pendulum." - quote taken from Christopher Zavisa's monograph on the artist, Berni Wrightson: A Look Back, page 251.

Jeff Jones was mentioned here on Monster Brains a few months ago regarding the artist's unfortunate passing.

Bernie Wrightson - "The Pit and the Pendulum" Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio (Christopher Enterprises, 1976)
The Pit And The Pendulum
"I saw clearly the doom which had been prepared for me..."


Bernie Wrightson -  Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio, Title Page  (Christopher Enterprises, 1976)

Bernie Wrightson - "Murders in the Rue Morgue" Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio, Painting (Christopher Enterprise, 1976)I was only able to find a few examples of the original paintings to compare against the portfolio prints, you can see the color differences between the original painting of Murders in the Rue Morgue and its printed version below.

Bernie Wrightson - "Murders in the Rue Morgue" Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio, Print (Christopher Enterprise, 1976).Murders In The Rue Morgue
"As the sailor looked in, the gigantic animal had seized Madame L'Espanaye by the hair..."

Bernie Wrightson - "The Tell Tale Heart" Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio,  Painting (Christopher Enterprises, 1976)

Bernie Wrightson - "The Tell Tale Heart" Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio, Print (Christopher Enterprises, 1976).The Tell - Tale Heart
"Villains!" I shrieked, "dissemble no more! I admit the deed! - tear up the planks! - here, here! - it is the beating of his hideous heart!"

Bernie Wrightson - "The Black Cat" Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio (Christopher Enterprises, 1976)The Back Cat
"She fell dead upon the spot, without a groan."

Bernie Wrightson - "The Premature Burial" Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio (Christopher Enterprises, 1976)The Premature Burial
"The boundaries which divide Life from Death are at best shadowy and vague. Who shall say where the one ends, and the other begins?"

Bernie Wrightson - "Masque of the Red Death" Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio (Christopher Enterprises, 1976)Masque Of The Red Death
"Seize and unmask him - that we may know whom we have to hang at sunrise, from the battlements!"

Bernie Wrightson - "The Cask of Amontillado" Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio (Christopher Enterprises, 1976)The Cask Of Amontillado
"For the love of God, Montressor!" "Yes," I said, "for the love of God!"

Bernie Wrightson - "Descent into the Maelstrom" Edgar Allan Poe Portfolio (Christopher Enterprises, 1976)
Descent Into The Maelstrom
"...I began to reflect how magnificent a thing it was to die in such a manner..."



The excellent Golden Age Comic Book Stories recently shared the Wrightson Poe prints, you can see slight color variations in those posted there.

2 comments:

kojak said...

the new sizes are perfect by the way! everything looks really great. thanks

Walt said...

I just picked this portfolio up and it is awesome!