Benedict Judas Hel

Thanks to Mr. Burkey, I was able to add 2 more pieces of Marvel villain art to my collection starting with Captain America #337 page 6: And Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Book of the Dead Deluxe Edition #18 page 14, The Kangaroo: As it appears in the comic book (a little weird the art is on a DC comic board):

I got in an 11” x 17” Baroness/Vega commission today by Brian Dawson:

I personally would prefer an origjnal commission rather than an exact recreation of an original. As others have stated, I would get an homage commission (in fact, I am getting one in the future) that is different and personal touches that I would suggest from the artist. As for investment appeal, I wouldn’t know enough to comment on that aspect. I buy original art/commissions for personal appreciation, not financial appreciation.

Hmm...I did not either being a newcomer to this hobby. I don’t quite remember how big his set up was at the comic con I attended but it was around the same time as the article ESeffinga posted. It had to be at least 2-3 tables and was at the middle end of Artists Alley. It is very selfish and careless behavior to displace fellow artists who registered their own tables in accordance to convention guidelines. However, I cannot deny that my own personal interaction with him was positive at this event.

I like his art style very much and love his Marvel Zombie comic covers. In fact, he was the first artist I ever got a commission from. Being a very private person, I am not one to approach anyone out of the blue and especially artists whose artwork I have admired and whose names I’ve only seen in my favorite comic books and magazines (I remember seeing Simon Bisley at a comic con table and being too shy to approach him). But Arthur Suydam made it extremely easy. He was very friendly and outgoing and urged me to approach his table. As others have stated, he didn’t have any original art to sell; only prints or sketch cover commissions. When I asked him if he had an original art, he stated he never took any to conventions because he was afraid the airport would lose or damage them. I ended up getting a sketch cover from him (a Spider-Man bust) which, I thought at the time was a bit expensive for what it was (being a newbie). Had I had the knowledge I had now, I would have asked if a take home commission was possible. However, I did recently commission Arthur, through his representative, during the recent Comic Art Live event where an 11”x17” take home commission was finally possible due to the recent pandemic going on. I got a 2-character commission (Vega and The Baroness as zombies) so I’m expecting them to come out fantastic knowing what Mr. Suydam is capable of.

Out of all of the artists I have gotten commissions from, Graham Nolan was the only artist who had no clue who Vega was. He said he wasn’t into video games so asked me for some reference pics. Now, that doesn’t necessarily mean everyone else automatically knew Vega right away. I suspect the other artists may have done Google image searches. Surprisingly, I’ve gotten more confirmation requests about The Baroness than Vega.

I got in a couple of 8” x 11 1/2” commissions by Giancarlo Caracuzzo today... Vega: And The Baroness:

Personally, I would never buy anything I don’t like. However, I’m not really a completist so I don’t have that sort of dilemma. So, if your completist sense compels you to buy the piece, if you can reasonably afford it and it is readily available, then I don’t see it as a problem. And should you have second thoughts afterwards, perhaps it can be used later in a trade for a piece you really do like.

I’d say less than 10% but not for lack of funds or art. I have very little wall space available. I have to cherry pick the best pieces of art and what makes it so hard is that I acquire better and better pieces every so often. It’s a conundrum!

Unfortunately I am a neophyte when it comes to comic art and don’t really know what Comic Art Tracker is but cool! Which character: Baroness or Vega?

Love this one, Malvin and I wish I could add it to my collection but unfortunately it is out of my price range. Glad to see it though!

I got in an 11” x 17” Baroness by Mitch Ballard:

I did see those Caverns of the Snow Witch illustrations previously and while I love the style of the artwork in that book, none of the offerings geabbed my interest enough for me to spend that amount of money on them. Also, I did see the the prelim but I was never a big fan of the European covers for the series (or off prelims in general). Additionally as you have stated, covers draw prices that are well beyond my price range. But thanks for the info! I really appreciate it.

I have regularly checked Ebay In the recent past (1-2 months now) and haven’t really found anything. The closest I got was recreations a few weeks ago which I am not interested in. However, I know that Ebay’s search engines can be quite finicky and unless you type a specific combination of words, you won’t get anything. But I’ll keep trying!

I am also hoping to add some Fighting Fantasy original art (interior pieces, not covers) from the original U.S. releases (books #1-#21). I’m sure they are super difficult to find and super expensive but I can dream...

My long awaited Iron Man #193 page 5 was finally finished and I was able to pick it up at the recently opened framers: I hung it next to my other framed piece, Avengers #114 page 21:

It’s been a long time since anything arrived in the mail (thanks to the current pandemic) but the dry spell has been broken by this 11” x 14” Baroness commission by Shane Hunt: He even included it in his most recently published art book (Visions: The Art of Shane Hunt) that I helped Kickstart: Page 79 to be exact:

I got in House of M:Masters of Evil #1 cover art by Mike Perkins. It looks spectacular and the only minor drawback is the lack of trade dress (but that’s par for the course for modern comic art): And as it appears in print form: This will probably be the only cover I will own as it is one I can reasonably afford AND would want.

I got in House of M: Masters of Evil #1 cover art by Mike Perkins: And as it appears in print form:

I got in another 8 x 10 commission from artist Kyle Roberts. This time it was my other favorite subject, Vega:

Thanks to Will Gabri-El, I was able to add Thor Annual #10 page 28 to my collection. It features Demogorge the God-Eater battling Thor and other Earth deities: The page as it appears in the comic:

I got in an 8” x 10” Vega commission today by J D Covey: He also included the digital preliminary as well:

I just got in this 11”x17” Baroness commission by John Rhodes:

I got in this 8”x10” Baroness watercolor commission today from Anthony Wheeler: And because he was a bit late in getting the above commission to me, he also threw in this 5”x7” Vega watercolor piece:

No problem. I did not take any offense in your question as I gathered it was in earnest. I know that the field of comics covers a vast array of genres (sci-fi, horror, crime, comedy, superhero, etc.) and just because a person collects or is interested in comics in general, it cannot be assumed that he/she will know every single thing about comic books. For example, even though I am a collector of comics, I personally know nothing about one of your favorite subjects, The Phantom Stranger only that I think he’s a DC character? But no worries. It’s all about good communications.