dichotomy

Yep, it’s Silver Surfer 15 from Allred/Slott’s first run. The rest are commissions.

Quite a large mail call today https://youtu.be/NVfoDg11u7k

All of it.

Does anyone condition the room that they keep their art in? I’ve just moved from a New England stone basement to West Coast upstairs, west facing bedroom (aka much more temp variation during 24 hour cycle). Recent events have me seriously considering a fire rated safe...

Thanks to the OP and all subsequent posters for their nuanced and interesting replies. This is the content I’m here for. Great and valid points all around. This is a conversation of Venn diagrams. Comic ART collectors meeting COMIC art collectors. Great art meeting great stories creates nostalgia and art. And great writing elevates the art, both in the conception (see the notoriously detailed notes from Moore and Gaiman to their collaborators) - this is interesting to consider when thinking about the collaborative nature of the art we collect. It may be one person, or it may be 4 or more! (a page that resonates because it encapsulates itself nicely - plus you get the “moments” of Supes glory soaring plus the transformation into Clark) Personally speaking, I noticed early on a particular affinity for story in the artwork I pursue. A cover tells a story, or at the very least asks a question. In my humble opinion, that’s the JOB of the cover. Art + Design. I do not think you will find many “hero pose” covers or commissions in my collection. Beyond a cover, is a sequence (or sequences - per Watchmen particularly) over one or more pages. Careful consideration and planning is key here and can often yield incredible results. Ultimately, it is the entire story. The artist or collaboration that is firing on all cylinders, well, I think it’s possible to craft a story with NO undesirable/unwanted pages. But it’s hard. And for the other 95%, there is absolutely nothing wrong with a minimal page, but I would encourage the seller to consider trying to sell “quieter” pages as a part of the sequence they were always meant to support. Finally, I take my hat off to anyone trying to put together an issue/story, particularly for older material. It is time consuming and EXPENSIVE - particularly if the story and artist have truly produced something that straddles the nostalgia/craft threshold. I have 5 complete issues (4 purchased complete, 1 I put together), Several complete stories (8-10 pages), and a large sequence of another book that I’m putting together. But all of this is modern. I just don’t have the funds for anything older. I tried putting together some sequences from the Simonson/Mignola Jungle Adventure and basically self-worked myself by driving the market up. But that’s the price you have to pay to do it. Finally, a tip of the hat to strip art! They’re fun for a reason -M PS while not my thing, I’ve noticed, akin to panel pages being cut up, pages from rare floppies being sold individually, and even by panel.

Fantastic page - congrats Luca! Great angles on Dream.

I’d also have to give a tip of the hat to (outside the current big 3) 1. BritComicArts - Joseph is a font of knowledge and very easy to work with. He’s also promised to sell me all the Sandman pages from his personal collection, so don’t even bother asking him about them. 😁 2. Cam Jarvis at Inky Knuckles - he’s super easy to communicate with and has rapidly built an excellent roster of artists whose work I am enjoying very much. The vibe is very relaxed and I’ve been enjoying the online shows that he’s been producing. 3. Annabel at KirbysComicArt continues to improve the website and is a deft hand with commissions. She remembers what you like and often sends some tempting new artwork.

This. Easiest way into a conversation, and they don’t have to be monster pieces. In fact, if your budget stretches to it, start with a small piece. Pay the asking price promptly, be polite, and honestly appreciative of the piece once received. Then start talking about what you really really want. I’m not saying to be disingenuous - it’s starting a relationship on a positive note in a world where often people don’t even have the courtesy to say “Hey, I received the art. It’s amazing. Thanks.”

This rough is a fantastic example of Bruce’s mastery. Like Darwyn, such concise and sure lines. Amazing.

I’ve got a great piece like this that absolutely was a gateway piece. I heard on Felix’s podcast the other creators talking about Tradd’s work and how you really have to see it in person to get it. So I went to the site and picked 2 interesting and extremely reasonable pages, and paid for them. After they were delivered and I finished cleaning up pieces of my head from the floor, I started thinking. Within weeks of that I approached Felix about a complete issue of SSB, which is probably one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. https://www.comicartfans.com/gallerypiece.asp?piece=1551368

As a new collector, absolutely! I was reading Yale Stewart’s JL8 online and then he started posting some pieces for auction on eBay. He did a Zatanna I really liked but lost out on, and then when this piece came up I made sure to snag it. It didn’t kickstart my collecting though because the strip and art are still outside mainstream comics for the most part. But paying for it helped me absorb prices at my first con, which resulted in some spectacular pieces that I might have balked paying for had I not been indoctrinated with this piece. I have the original in my den, and a color print that Yale sent hangs in my son’s room.

Just the one but it does quite nicely. Published as the back cover of a sketch book. I’ve also been quite perturbed by the fakes rampantly multiplying.

I was really shocked to find out @JadeGiant is a Caucasian! 😜 great pieces guys! Thanks for sharing.

I don’t know why it got bumped recently on twitter but I did see some very heartwarming footage of Jim Lee sneaking artwork to people on his 50th birthday. I take my hat off to him. Watching his twitch stream one sees how much of a natural teacher he his and how much he loves the medium. The auction 60 have been incredible. He’s a GOAT for shizzle. Now, please finish my commission 🙏🏿 🤣

Almost never. Maybe if I needed a page to finish a story/issue. Speaking of, really not feeling this Kirby Thor at Heritage. Just me?

Ditto the above - he’s very active on eBay.

I see where you’re going with this and I rather like it. It’s the way the drops work already though because, ignoring bots, adding a single item to your cart and checking out is always going to be faster than adding more than 1 item. Also, limiting to one piece per order could also hurt you because if someone has a better bot than you, they could use several browsers to put in simultaneous orders, and still beat you out of multiple pieces. 🤷‍♂️

The bot/-script question is an interesting one - it was my first thought when looking at these drops, but my old fashioned fingers used to be good enough so I didn’t delve much deeper. Recently, I’ve been striking out more and so the question comes back into play - used in moderation an automated tool would be very efficient, but I if abused the management could take steps to rectify or censor the person. It would be easy enough to weed out offenders by physical mailing addresses. Again, OA is 1/1 and sale numbers are always going to be lower than anything mass produced, so the vendor will have time to look at every order, if necessary. My two cents.

Great cover with the HQ!

Here’s a fun Deathlok + Punisher. You KNOW that issue is nothing but hot dogs, sunshine, and picnics. Zero tragedy.

Capitalizing on the red hot Mr Moore, here’s Spidey + Ms Marvel and then a team team-up, JLA + Black Hammer. Bill J - congrats, that Bermejo is brilliant.

I’ve found 6 of the winners so far, and one incredibly lucky person secured 2 pages!!!

Riley Rossmo does pretty detailed roughs on the back of his pieces - always fun to check.

Seems like a good place for a repost - I also tried for pages but got locked out. In his chat yesterday Felix mentioned almost 200 requests for the 16 pieces.

Throwing my hat in as a #manchild. Welcome. I like my soup hot!