Fantasy Art Society
The Fantasy Art Society (FAS) was created by Alan Hunter in 1951 under the auspices of Operation Fantast. After discussions with Ken Slater he first floated the idea through the Fantasy Art Society Leaflet as a clearing house for fanzine artwork and included both amateur and semi-professional UK artists who specialised in science fiction and fantasy artwork. An advertisement for the Society in Sludge #1 (Summer 1951) explained:
This is more than just a club of fantasy artists, collectors and enthusiasts, but also a co-operative, non-profit making enterprise for the production of Fantasy Calendars, Postcards, Bookplates, Envelope Stickers etc. MEMBERSHIP FEE - including O. F. Membership - 10 shilling. Per year. For this you receive not only the opportunity of corresponding with fans of a like interest, but also: For artists – a new market and opportunity of seeing your drawings in print – only the drawings of members will be considered for the Society's projects, and all drawings used will be paid for. For collectors and enthusiasts – advance news of the activities of fan artists and the opportunity to help with this, the first attempt to organise fan art. For all members – the society's products at a special cut rate and a 50 per-cent pro rata shareout of profits at the end of each financial year when a financial report will also be issued. If applying for membership, please state whether artists, collector or enthusiast, etc. Also if you are in a position to handle any part of the society's activities. All help will be acknowledged by payment where possible.
Hunter said that:
Within a few months it had twenty-three members with such diverse occupations as a long-distance lorry driver, a charter[ed] accountant, an ex-member of the Submarine Service, the owner of a Fantasy Book shop and a bricklayer[1].
Harry Turner was a mainstay and members included Joe Bowman, Les Chapman, John duJardin, Terry Jeeves, Ken McIntyre, Bill Price, Ken Potter, Gerard Quinn, Peter J. Ridley, Bob Shaw, Dave Wood and Staff Wright. George F. Clements was also a member although he wasn't an artist himself[2]. It is left as an exercise for the reader to attempt to match names to occupations.
The first issue of its official organ, the Fantasy Art Society Newsletter, appeared in February 1952 and was edited by Hunter. There were six issues, the last appearing in November 1953. Additionally, there were two single-copy fanzines, at least five issues of Centaurus from Dave Wood and at least three issues of Stellar (Potter) from Ken Potter. It's possible that these were what Hunter described as 'portfolios' – for which see later – but Dirce Archer regarded them as fanzines:
The two zines were rather unique. They were produced regularly but there was only one copy of each, as the contents were the originals of the art work, articles and stories, not copies. This probably was one reason for the British-only policy, as the mails would not have dealt kindly with these single copies if zipped back and forth between.the B.I. and the U.S.A.'[3].
The Society also maintained a 'a lending library of art books, for study and instruction'[4] and Gerard Quinn:
offered his services as art critic, willing to advise and constructively criticise the work of less experienced members[5].
When Hunter became art editor at Nebula he was able to commission art from members, reporting that 'six F.A.S. members made their first professional appearance in this way'[6].
The Society published the Fantasy Art Society Calendar in 1953 featuring work by Wright, Ridley, Hunter, Quinn, Bowman and Shaw[7]. Lynn Hickman said of it:
This calendar is the first project of the FAS, a society that Alan Hunter organized in Great Britain to help, amateur fantasy artists. It is a beautiful job and one that I would strongly recommend to all monsters[8].
However, this was also the final blow to a Society already in trouble. According to Hunter, nobody availed themselves of the library, and the portfolios – presumably Centaurus and Stellar – disappeared with everybody claiming to have passed them on to somebody else. Then Quinn resigned due to pressure of work. But it was really the calendar that killed the FAS with 500 copies printed and only 225 sold, leading to a loss of £20 that the Society's funds couldn't meet[9].
The Society ended around 1955.
____
- ↑ 'FAS' by Alan Hunter, Blunt #2 (November 1973).
- ↑ Void #1 (November 1952).
- ↑ 'Fantasy Art Society 1951–1955' by Dirce Archer, Pas-tell #23 (May 1967)
- ↑ Ibid (Archer).
- ↑ Ibid (Hunter).
- ↑ Ibid (Hunter).
- ↑ Advertisement in Operation Fantast #13-14 (Winter 1952).
- ↑ TLMA #6 (October 1952).
- ↑ Ibid (Hunter).
| From Fancyclopedia 2, ca. 1959 |
| A British club supplying art work to British and American fanzines; Alan Hunter and others were wheels. Flourished in the early fifties. |
| Club | 1951—1955 |
| This is a club page. Please extend it by adding information about when and where the club met, when and by whom it was founded, how long it was active, notable accomplishments, well-known members, clubzines, any conventions it ran, external links to the club's website, other club pages, etc.
When there's a floreat (Fl.), this indicates the time or times for which we have found evidence that the club existed. This is probably not going to represent the club's full lifetime, so please update it if you can! |
