grapeape

I purchased this directly from DOA at the SDCC in the nineties. Sent a message to Jim Warden and he very kindly has reached out to Mike Zeck. grapeape: Was this intended as a Punisher cover Is it the prelim to Bloodshot Last Stand cover Maybe started as Punisher then used as Bloodshot? Dying to know. I attached the cover to Bloodshot Last Stand it looks dead on to me. Mike Zeck responded to Jim Warden: • It was not originally created for any Punisher related project. Specifically targeted to that Bloodshot cover. Looking at it now is the first time I’m realizing how close the pose is to a Punisher pose from years prior. The ‘Plate One’ illustration for the first Punisher Portfolio! I wasn’t aware I was ‘homaging’ myself at the time :-)

I saw this prelim on Glen's Panel Page Art website. Got me thinking, who out there has prelim art in your collection. A "prelim" for ASM 302 by McFarlane recently sold on eBay, you can see it on Lee Benaka's brilliant thread Flip of the Day. What have ya got?

Thanx mike! 👂

I said that to emphasize NOT to risk money. I don't know the OP so I'm hoping to talk him/her out of making a mistake they can't live with.

Dr. Balls has my favorite avatar

I can't believe another page hasn't surfaced. Brutal. You have great pages, but at least a few more would make your collecting days sweeter. One has to show up Perservere my friend.

It's gross, but it's why I bid on it. I knew whatever it sold for, the relist value "ask" would be 2-3 times. Not to the likes of us who have trouble justifying the piece just on quality alone. This price is a trap set for the well heeled sucker who missed the auction all together.

Most likely you are correct. Still, I see an opening to the fine art world. It's small, just a crack. I believe some comic art would translate to a small, but influential network of art pimps. It would just take a few well heeled galleries to experiment in "Primitive pop culural expression." I can see that's not likely, but as Lloyd said in Dumb and Dumber, " so you're saying there's a chance."

These are tough Javier. Unless its dirt....dirt...cheap like twenty bucks, stay away. Is there any verifiable provenace for the piece? I'm not talking about COA's which are worthless in our hobby. Just provenance... like a chain of ownership to atleast see if the story matches the art.

Price protection is a precursor to somebody holding the bag. That's the shame of not letting the market find its own top. I'll be waiting if it all collapses

It's going to be interesting to watch. In most cases I would agree that an "iconic" published page is king. In this case though we have an iconic non published piece by a comic art legend, drawing the most iconic hero in comic history (with no disrespect to Supes and Batman). The quality, large drawn Spidey by Ditko....... published or not it's like finding an unbelievable treasure. The pin up I think matches or surpasses any page Ditko ever drew, and he displayed Amazing quality in his work in 1-37 and AF15.

Normally I'm sharper minded. Apologies my friend.

💯

Very good points. Just know that there are some on the board who insist comic OA will never crossover to, say, the fine art market. While they make relevant points about snobbery, Or Rembrandt vs. Sal Buscena... I still believe there is a way OA expands in some form over to the galleries of fine art. It's not always comparisons that drive an art market. Picasso is on another level than Don Heck. Okay. A given. Art is intuitive, and the collector is a target for manipulation, but also self examination of what appeals to them. Now it only takes money and access, mixed with enthusiasm.and A clever gallery rep will one day "challenge" the fine art world with primitive expression that relies less on comparing the talent of the fine art masters, but does mark a significant time period of the comic created form. Nostalgia and "one of a kind" art mix together and make a hell of drug. I can't speak to digital art, other than to say it's what we have now. I prefer the old way. I'm happy to hear your experience with young people and their expressed appreciation of comic art! I think are likely to impact the OA market over the next 10-20 years:

Terry I'm not sure there is one. I just want to see what if anything might be there. The treasure Hunter in me. Artie Simek rocks!!!!

The powers that be at DC the moment they dreamed up the final nail for his coffin.

There she is with Joe Sinnott. We're losing so many artist friends. Rest in peace and God bless.

I'm telling everyone straight up. One of the best art drops I've seen from Glen. Pretty good round up, really. A+

Bingo. That's what it looks like. It was a solid description but I think the more info on an unpublished piece the better the 💰 for seller. it's too good. It feels like this one was presented with one of the published ones, and was sent to the bench as a second choice. It's so damn good! This is why I search everyday to unearth treasures. None of the time is wasted. Not just the goal, or the grail, but the glory of the journey to fetch said treasure brings joy to a collector like me. Excelsior Stan Lee for giving this one away. Ditto to dashing Steve Ditko, the artist who quit us long ago, but we've never quit loving his mesmerizing talent.

Buddy, if you can get a scan from them and post here, it would be most appreciated.

They can. They will. Hypothetically. Allegedly. Most definitely.

I wish I knew how to combine them.

Some good takes, thank you. For the 90's period Witchblade stood out for me. I am on the side of the argument that "objectification of women" as an art form will always appeal to the audience it was intended for. Any protest, or downward pressure to censure the art form ultimately majes it more desirable. Mark Bagley's Amazing Spider-Man run has a lot of fans. He is a ⭐️ to watch over these next few years. The point of this thread is pretty simple. The best known copy of comic fandoms signature superhero now trades for millions. But I remember the day when it would've sold for a fraction of the price. Many other golden age comics of the same time period sell in the hundreds of dollars. So, figure out what's the cream of your collection, and let it rise to the top.

I apologize that CGC and maybe my unsteady hand posted this topic x 2 threads same name. Yeesh.