Curse of the Blue Figurine Original Artwork

I recently acquired a piece of original artwork created by Edward Gorey for John Bellairs' The Curse of the Blue Figurine. The book was published in 1983 and there is more information on this title in my posting from May 24, 2009. This frightening image was used as the frontis illustration and is reprinted full size in the book. The drawing is signed in ink by Mr. Gorey.

This beautifully rendered pen & ink illustration shows a menacing figure with glowing eyes being held at bay by Professor Childermass in a cave on a stormy night. The unconscious Johnny Dixon is being pulled away from the figure by the fearful Professor.

The skill of Edward Gorey's crosshatching technique in this piece of art is a master class in line manipulation. In this single image Mr. Gorey uses variations of line to render the cave, figures, rain outside the cave, fire, smoke from the fire, and the enveloping darkness surrounding them. I especially like the two pinpoint glowing eyes of the advancing figure which are added with small dots of white paint.