MGS

So glad I missed over a page worth of other replies basically saying the same thing before me. Oops. Mike

For me, if everything is done by the same artist then I’m okay with inks over digital pencils even if I would prefer traditional pencils. Given that you’re just talking about digital layouts and then traditional pencils (and inks) over that, then that’s something I’d be happy with. The one concern I would have is how much of the layouts, if any, are visible once you’re done. I’ve seen some pieces where quite a bit of the blueline digital printout is still visible, and it does kinda take away from the visual appeal a bit. Mike

Yeah, I’m not going to skip out on modern art because it doesn’t have the word balloons, but I’d be lying if I said it didn’t bother me at all. As with the 100 Bullets example above, given the choice between two similar pages from the same artist on the same book, I’d take one with the word balloons and be willing to pay a bit more for that. Mike

The presence of dialogue definitely impacts the value for me, especially if the dialogue is important in the context of the story. For example, I certainly paid more for this Preacher page (thanks, Claudio) than I would have if the word balloons weren’t on there. Mike

Not sure who qualifies as "lesser known", but here are a few pieces from my collection by artists who I don't see pop up very often (if at all) around here. Andres Guinaldo Das Pastoras Al Barrionuevo Mike

I don't see any of his published stuff up on the site, but for commissions I believe he's now repped by ComicSketchArt.com: http://www.comicsketchart.com/artist-alley-david-finch.html Mike

Bidding ends tonight! Mike

Just posted this on Ebay. It's Marco Rudy's original cover painting for Valiant Comic's Divinity III Shadowman #1. https://www.ebay.com/itm/183043987263 Please take a look and bid if you're interested. Thanks! Mike

Published Ninjak #26 cover by Juan José Ryp

Sadly, I believe Scott Clark passed away a few years ago. Mike

If you're talking about the page that recently popped up on Cool Lines then that's the exact page that stinkininkin was referring to in his comment that Twanj posted above. I asked about it because I won it in a ComicLink auction, and was looking to clarify the inker. Turned out not only was the inker listed incorrectly, but the penciller was as well (it was listed as Portacio pencils). I was able to return the page for that reason. I assume Cool Lines won the page when it was recently re-listed on ComicLink with pencils attributed to Scott Clark (http://www.comiclink.com/auctions/item.asp?id=1186448). Rather than just go back to Portacio pencils they have now decided to throw Jim Lee in there for good measure as well. Yeah, it was 25 years ago, but I'd still stick with stinkininkin's recollection over their claims, but I guess you never know. Mike

You're too kind! Mike

I've been trying to add a Preacher page to my collection basically since I started collecting about 3.5 years ago, but it never seemed to quite work out. In fact, I was the underbidder on a couple of the pages that have popped up in this thread. Anyway, I was finally able to pick one up. Lots of good stuff here. It's got Jessie and The Duke (and TC), some great dialog, and it's from a pretty pivotal point in a classic arc. Thanks to Claudio for hooking me up! Mike

Yeah, I feel like there was a noticeable change maybe a year or so ago where I started to see fewer views on stuff I posted in my gallery. I mostly collect current Valiant art, so it's not like I was getting hundreds of views on most of my pieces (you're missing out, people!), but it seemed like all of a sudden I was getting maybe half as many views as before on newly posted stuff. I remember wondering at the time if there had been a change in how views were registered or something since I was basically posting the same types of pieces as I had been weeks or months earlier. Mike

Well, at least three because I'm in the same boat. Obviously, everyone is different and I realize these points have all been made before, but to me at least half the enjoyment of finally getting my hands on a comic that I dreamed of owning as a kid (Hulk 181, GS X-Men 1, Avengers 4, etc) is actually being able to hold it in my hands and read it. The other half is pretending I don't remember how much cheaper they would have been back in the 80's if only I had any money back then. Now, exposing the books to my grubby hands has probably knocked .5 off their potential grades, but I'm willing to take the risk. That being said, since I started collecting art a few years ago I don't think I've actually bought any vintage books. I still read and collect modern books, but with the way my available storage space is dwindling, I may have to go to digital sooner rather than later. Mike

I only ended up buying one piece at NYCC, but it's the one that I had really been hoping to get going in. X-O Manowar #8 Cover by J.G. Jones Mike

Just added this painted cover for Ninjak #24 by Felipe Massafera to my collection. http://www.comicartfans.com/gallerypiece.asp?piece=1400888 Mike

Not sure if you're still looking, but I noticed today that Cadence Comic Art has some of his stuff available: http://cadencecomicart.com/artist.php?artist=101 Mike

Yeah, I got back into reading comics right around the time of the Valiant relaunch. I had been a Marvel guy back in the 80s, but looking at the then-current line I kinda threw my hands up at trying to figure out what was going on, so the idea of a company putting out 9 or so books a month was very appealing. I got into OA collecting shortly thereafter, and while I definitely pick up some nostalgia stuff, it's great to be able to collect very reasonably priced art from books that I'm reading today. Not sure what I'd suggest as a good jumping on point, but I'd definitely recommend giving them a try. Thanks. Maybe they'll convert you someday down the road. Mike

Given that a good portion of my collection is modern Valiant art, I'd say a lot of it would qualify as under-appreciated. One piece in particular that stands out to me is this wrap-around cover for Wrath of the Eternal Warrior #1 by David Lafuente. Mike

Indeed! His input really helped me out. Mike

Just wanted to give full credit to ComicLink here. I emailed them about this and they agreed to a return right away. I was prepared for more of a battle . Looks like I'll continue to be a happy ComicLink customer! Guess I'm back in the market for a Portacio UXM page. Mike

Hmm, well that certainly is interesting. It sounds as though I paid for a page with Whilce Portacio pencils and Scott Williams inks, and I got neither. Thanks for clearing up the details on this page, Scott. I appreciate it. Mike

One last bump. Both auctions close tonight, and they're both at very reasonable prices right now, so get those bids in while you still can! Mike

I was kinda surprised by the hammer price on that Portacio UXM page too, and I'm the guy that won it. I put in what I thought was a fairly high max bid, but I was hoping it wouldn't actually go that high. However, as is pretty much always the case whenever I win an auction, there was one guy out there willing to go just below my max bid. Oh well, as you said, there aren't a ton of Portacio UXM pages out there, so I was still very happy with the win. Mike