Bretd

Thank you, this was very helpful and actionable advice! Yes, I'm a fan, and mostly looking to buy art to display - though would be nice if it appreciates over time as well in case I ever need to sell for whatever reason.

Thanks for the pointers! I'm mostly interested in J. Scott Campbell's work in this space, have most of his books and love his style and playfulness. Also interested in the classic pinup artists from Royo to Vargas to Sorayama etc. - though not comic book artists, and I'm certain the originals are well beyond my means. Jen Bartel did some incredible covers for Blackbird as well. They work a lot better inked than black and white, so the originals wouldn't be nearly as appealing for me to display. I'm staying away from auctions for now. Planning to start out by buying directly from the artists. I'll check out Frederic Lorge, I'm based in Amsterdam and Brussels is close by.

Thank you everyone to links to the threads, and guidance, very helpful! Especially on what the reputable places to buy is great. I wasn't planning on eBay, but directly from the artists - didn't realize that some artists have their own representatives. It's a bit weird that an artist wouldn't have an easy way to contact them for direct sales of original art, as that would be the interest of the artist, and the fan. I'm looking to buy an original cover to get started, I currently only own comics and artbooks. I didn't even know commissioned art of known characters was a thing - I understood that for example that you couldn't draw and sell a picture of The Punisher for profit without paying royalties to Marvel and getting their permission. Now I'm going to Google how much a used Buick Encore costs :P

I'm looking to buy original comic book cover art, probably in the good girl genre - something that appeals to me enough to put on my wall, but also something that might appreciate in value over time. I've reached out to three artists, J. Scott Campbell, Jay Anacleto and Ben Oliver regarding specific cover art they've made. Haven't heard back from two of them. JSC's team responded: fast responses and very helpful guidance for a newbie. I have most of his books, and am a huge fan of his, so glad that his team is responsive. Though the prices are quite a bit higher than I was expecting, but that could also be my newbie-ness, as I've never looked at original art until recently. So at the moment I'm suffering from sticker shock, and I'm sure they think I'm a tire-kicker due to all my questions There isn't much guidance for someone about to start collecting original art out there - plenty on comics, not so much on cover art. How do I prove provenance and originality in this space? JSC's people tell that it's signed by the artist, but there's no certificate of authenticity that comes with the piece. I guess a receipt would be a pretty good proof, but how about buying from secondary sources? Is there a secret hand-shake to buy original art directly from the artists? Or just stalk them on IG and hope they sometimes check their DMs? Secondary market seems to be dominated by a few online auctions based in the US - I'm in Europe, so that would limit my chances of reselling if I ever decide to do so. Or is there a more global market?

I'm looking to buy original comic book cover art, probably in the good girl genre - something that appeals to me enough to put on my wall, but also something that might appreciate in value over time. I've reached out to three artists, J. Scott Campbell, Jay Anacleto and Ben Oliver regarding specific cover art they've made. Haven't heard back from two of them. JSC's team responded: fast responses and very helpful guidance for a newbie. I have most of his books, and am a huge fan of his, so glad that his team is responsive. Though the prices are quite a bit higher than I was expecting, but that could also be my newbie-ness, as I've never looked at original art until recently. So at the moment I'm suffering from sticker shock, and I'm sure they think I'm a tire-kicker due to all my questions There isn't much guidance for someone about to start collecting original art out there - plenty on comics, not so much on cover art. How do I prove provenance and originality in this space? JSC's people tell that it's signed by the artist, but there's no certificate of authenticity that I'm aware of that comes with the piece. Is there a secret hand-shake to buy original art directly from the artists? Or just stalk them on IG and hope they sometimes check their DMs? Secondary market seems to be dominated by a few online auctions based in the US - I'm in Europe, so that would limit my chances of reselling if I ever decide to do so. Or is there a more global market?