Carlo M

On 4/6/2024 at 10:10 PM, Kevn said:

No insight beyond what I can deduce from the Heritage scan and the original cover image. It looks like the original art was photostatically reduced by about 30%, with the resulting photostat mounted on a blank 10x15 board and additional bg inked in to add the tip of the surfboard, more building on the left and right, a little more ground at the bottom, and more Medusa hair as needed. A lot of the bg sky was inked black, requiring a simplification of the 'swoosh' lines off the back of the surfboard. The signatures were also whited out and inked over, then title and other stats added. Then the whole thing was photographically reduced the standard amount for printing as a cover.

I'm guessing that this was done because if the title and other stats were put on the original 10x15 board (i.e., what was sold in the auction), it would have covered up most of the SS and part of the thing. It simply wouldn't have worked. As for this now not completely matching the published cover, to my eyes, this makes the cover OA more desirable. You get a larger image of what really matters (a great, well rendered action scene!), with no ugly stats and clumsy corrections. And the signatures are revealed. If there had been significant changes to the characters, as is often seen in covers, I might feel differently, but here the figures are identical.

Makes sense! Some of the covers back then were obviously heavily “produced “, I guess the important is the confidence that there is no other “original “ lying around. 

One of the strongest prices was the Buckler FF 155 cover.  It is a great image and has SS on it, but I thought the fact that its different from the published version would hold it back.  Anybody has any insights into the story of that particular cover?

Super peak Perez with great Marcos inks in the interiors . Great storylines . This cover has a great layout , prime characters and screams Perez. The spiders are a bit distracting though …

And yet some pieces were really strong . I am surprised nobody mentioned the Portacio UXM DPS. No Wolverine and yet about 100k!  So glad Portacio is getting some love . He was a bit hit or miss on XF and UXM but the good pieces are gorgeous !
 

More generally , late  ‘80s and ‘90s art seems to be leading the way at the moment 

On 11/13/2023 at 8:35 AM, Brian Peck said:

I was annoyed at some of the lack of etiquette. I had two people contact me thru the CAL contact email option (not a purchase request). First person emailed me on saturday he was interested and asked the shipping cost but did not include what artwork he wanted. I responded asking what artwork. Then resent a purchase request which had the artwork listed but still mentioned he was interested. I responded but never heard back. Then I sold it to another person later after waiting an hour.

Other person CAL contact email option on saturday and said he was "seriously interested" and asked if I could do a lower price. I responded with and offer but no response either accept or reject. Emailed again today earlier but no response. I understand there is alot of art people are looking at and some are selling. But if you inquire about a piece say your interested or ask for a discount. I expect the person to response saying the will do the deal or decide not to. This is what I always do if I inquire and and decide not to buy I always tell the seller my decision.

Please a little etiquette when you inquire about possible buying artwork.

Similar etiquette is to be expected by dealers / sellers as well.  I sent through a request to purchase to a very "reputed" dealer and got no answer at all.  I sent through an offer on another piece and did not receive a reply either.

I just saw the news of Dan Green’s passing.  To me, he rightfully belongs to the list of the greatest super hero inkers, being able to work on very different artists (ranging from S Buscema and Byrne at the start of his career) and being to ‘80s Uncanny what Sinnott was to ‘70s FF, ie a provider of consistent “look” across various artists.

I am so proud to own some of his work.

On 8/1/2023 at 10:51 PM, batman_fan said:

A few more interesting pieces coming up

1st time I remember seeing this piece up for sell.

 

The “Funky Leg” Conan cover is back again.

The DD splash sold on HA in April 2020 for 96k.  I guess it was the first auciton during lockdown.

Wally Wood Daredevil #5 Splash Page 1 Original Art (Marvel, | Lot #91044 | Heritage Auctions (ha.com)

On 7/31/2023 at 11:50 PM, artdisease said:

I don't have my 1st or 2nd, but I do have my 3rd and 4th. Two consecutive Jae Lee Inhumans pages. Sorry, don't have a scan.

Funny two Jae Lee Inhumans pages were also my very first acquisition.  1998, bought from AlbertMoy.  Still have them and still love them

On 6/24/2023 at 7:30 PM, Unstoppablejayd said:

I thought it was an ok buy … yes half splash but rogue in a none rogue outfit - fury and kazar… I think people who want to spend up on lee Williams want X-men on there X-men pages… I actually thought the 248 page was the better buy but got dinged for green inks (I almost got it on a proxy bid lol) 

Ok buy?  In absolute terms, probably yes.  Compared to 2022 level, even looking at second tier character, an excellebt buy.  look at this one for example:

Jim Lee and Scott Williams The Uncanny X-Men #277 Story Page 1 | Lot #94089 | Heritage Auctions (ha.com)

Lee Williams half splash from UXM with good characters for about 15k? The market is definitely cooling down. I think it is good news for the hobby , 2021 and 2022 levels were just crazy . But , I think we will see less prime materials coming through. 

Kamandi at 24k is "only" 1k off its 2020 price, right? That would confirm the market cooling off but certainly not crashing.  For sure I think Byrne UXM page would have gone hjgher one / two years ago. Congrats to the buyer, it is a great page.

On 6/19/2023 at 5:38 AM, tth2 said:

Egyptian Queen is Top 3 Frazetta.

Without being a Frazetta expert, and with no context around his work, I also prefer EQ.  More subtle and mysterious, with a great atmosphere.  So it is fair to argue that the Frazetta market today is stronger than it was in 2019.  I think it is an interesting datapoint, the 2020 effect obviously has not worn off entirely.

I am no Frazetta expert, so I would be curious to know how collectors of his work compare Dark Kingdom to Egyptian Queen.  Is it viewed as a superior piece or the market even in today's shaky condition is higher than 2019?

One of the greatest.  The adjective that comest to my mind when I look at his art is "classy".  RIP

That is one trade every 8.33333 years . That was sort of my point 

On 5/23/2023 at 9:31 PM, J.Sid said:

It's hard enough finding someone who will give you what your item is worth.

You're taking it to the next level by hoping:
1.They also have something you want
2. They are willing to part with that something and
3. They are not bat-s**t crazy about the value of their piece.

Best to simply sell and then use that money to purchase (in my experience)

 

Plus one.  Hardly worth the effort, IMHO.  But hey, you might get lucky, no harm in trying.

On 5/21/2023 at 1:00 PM, KirbyCollector said:

All unsold as of Sunday morning, too

SSB 2 page 2 shows as sold on CConnect (27.5k).  

I will be there.  It is a good event, not too crowded and 100% focused on OA.  There will be some high profile dealers and lots of artists.  And the setting is beautiful.  will report back with some pictures.

Carlo

On 4/28/2023 at 2:43 AM, NinjaSealed said:

There have been a few books in a similar ballpark, but none with the demand I can think of to sell out like this at these prices. 

I tried, but I didn’t end up with any pages. 

 

Wasn’t Capullo asking similar prices on his Batman work ? Not sure he sold as much though 

I could not log in at the right time , anyone knows what the price ranges were on this art drop ?

On 4/1/2023 at 10:51 PM, KirbyCollector said:

I like and appreciate well-drawn art featuring women. Maybe it is my age... or the fact I have a 21 y.o. daughter... but JSC's rendering here of tied-up teenage girls creeps me the f--- out.

+ one

On 3/30/2023 at 10:22 PM, tth2 said:

Same.

Maybe the Great Crash really IS finally here! 

I for sure truly hope that I can get some good prices in the future.  But let's be objective.  43.2K for the Miller page is still very strong for about two inches of DD and the rest is weights being thrown around.132k for the ASM cover, again not a lot of Spidey (and not the classic mask either).  I really like the P Smith page but it is really one Colosssus panel.  Mind you all of the above are good examples of the respective artists, but to say that the crash is here based on these example is a bit hasty, IMHO.

On 3/23/2023 at 3:44 AM, Grant Turner said:

GOTG pages are on fire!

 

It is not even the first appearance issue!  I am glad the original GotG are getting some love, such a great cast of characters!  I hope Marvel took notice and used them a bit more.

If it is OA I would not be bothered at all.  Actually I do not mind a bit of "production" items, as they are typical of the Bronze Age process.  But I definitely would want to know and be able to see clearly what we are talking about before bidding.