New to OA Collecting, Advice, tips? 9 9

[Kevin76]

 

7) Don't overly show it off. The less people see it, the better. It gets old seeing the same piece of art over and over again. When it comes time to sell, it'll be "fresh to the market". Impulse buying is the reason.

 

 

 

Avoid posting on CAF?

 

 

 

yes, unless you're looking for a buyer.

[Rodey]

But I like showing off my stuff!

[CollectingFool]

The 10 points of advice given are perfect for those that view the hobby as a place to park their money and are looking for a good return in the future. It treats comic OA like a commodity and just slightly different from a stock certificate. I think it's exactly what most people entering the hobby today are looking for.

 

To me, they are all alien concepts.

 

 

[alxjhnsn]

I have a slightly different POV.

 

My list:

 

1) Buy what makes you happy. Resale is not the reason to buy any art.

 

2) Shop learn the market. Decide what matters to you and where the prices are. Then, buy when you see the right piece.

 

3) Buy quality, not quantity! I have to agree that buying (anything) for buying's sake is a poor decision generally.

 

4) Protect your OA, put them in mylar bags or in sturdy portfolios or frames. Use archival materials.

 

5) Get insurance if you can't afford the loss. There is something to be said for fireproof storage.

 

6) Share it! Put it on the CAF.

 

7) Make connections; you can find some great friends (reall and e-) in this hobby and that's a chunk of the fun.

 

8) If it's not fun for you or can't afford it, get out, but that's true for most avocations. Don't do it if it's not fun and don't let your hobbies drive you to bankruptcy.

[LastRaven]

The 10 points of advice given are perfect for those that view the hobby as a place to park their money and are looking for a good return in the future. It treats comic OA like a commodity and just slightly different from a stock certificate. I think it's exactly what most people entering the hobby today are looking for.

 

To me, they are all alien concepts.

 

 

I do agree.

 

Honestly, protecting your art and having an "exit strategy" isn't a bad idea because people do get bored or lose passion or sometimes have to give up pieces to make ends meet in tough times. It happens and maybe the stuff you collect today might be the pieces you sell to fund your interests 10 years from now. Connections aren't just great for potential sellers in the future, but potential sellers to you as well. It's good to have friends in the hobby with your interests!

 

Also, I would tend to think that a fellow collector might provide a handy alternative to eBay or auction routes (but give them a break off the price ). However, collecting with the intent of selling isn't my goal and I'd be reluctant to sell my items to someone who has that intent.

 

I don't agree with fresh to market mentality though since I know personally how many pieces on CAF are there I would love to own right now and there are pieces that aren't or may never be that I'd still like to own, but it doesn't change my valuation of them.

 

Maybe it's because I don't spend 10k per page / cover.... but starting small was a way I found the hobby accessible to me. I decided to move up gradually as I learned how to deal with people and what things were worth and who to / not to buy from. I know I made one or two $100 (cost of the error) mistakes early on by buying a few flipped pieces and if I had gone big, that might have been a lot larger mistake (at least on my budget).

[Kevin76]

But I like showing off my stuff!

 

So you can get a pat on the back? Great stuff! I mean really, I know what I have, you know what you have, if you love it, then you don't need to be told by someone else that you have a nice art collection. Don't use your art to boost your self esteem! Millionaires do this only with cars, boats, houses and the like.

[Kevin76]

I have a slightly different POV.

 

My list:

 

1) Buy what makes you happy. Resale is not the reason to buy any art.

 

2) Shop learn the market. Decide what matters to you and where the prices are. Then, buy when you see the right piece.

 

3) Buy quality, not quantity! I have to agree that buying (anything) for buying's sake is a poor decision generally.

 

4) Protect your OA, put them in mylar bags or in sturdy portfolios or frames. Use archival materials.

 

5) Get insurance if you can't afford the loss. There is something to be said for fireproof storage.

 

6) Share it! Put it on the CAF.

 

7) Make connections; you can find some great friends (reall and e-) in this hobby and that's a chunk of the fun.

 

8) If it's not fun for you or can't afford it, get out, but that's true for most avocations. Don't do it if it's not fun and don't let your hobbies drive you to bankruptcy.

 

Same advice I gave only reworded.

[alxjhnsn]

Just a different POV - no resale interest. That changes the tone.

[Weird Paper]

Just a different POV - no resale interest. That changes the tone.

Quite a bit. I'll concur with your advice Alex. I like to share my art and I like to see other collectors' collections. In my perspective (which is the only one I can really speak to) I don't care whether a piece has been in somebody's CAF for ten years, or is "fresh to market." Granted, if a piece has floated around for a while, that might lessen the interest in it, but that only means that if I want it, I can probably get it cheaper.

Plus, in this era when escalating values increases the possibility of forgery, I like the idea of a digital provenance.

When I joined CAF at the ripe old age of 45, I don't think I was in need of any ego boost or validation. I was just looking to share my art and see the collections of others. I guess we all have different motivations.

[alxjhnsn]

I'm with you Roger.

 

Circulated art simply means that the seller is asking for more than the market is willing to pay. No big deal. It's the same page.

 

The big difference between the lists is my rule 6 which is in direct conflict with his rule 7.

 

I'm about enjoying and sharing the art I've found that means something to me. The other list is more about investing.

 

These are necessarily conflicting goals, but there are points of difference.

 

I've had a lot of joy exploring the CAF and thank those folks for sharing.

[Rodey]

I do like the Buy Quality Not Quality mantra. I fell into this trap early on with OA. It's easy to spend $100 on 10 pages that you may not really enjoy after a while. But a higher quality page (either out of nostalgia, value, or aesthetics) really makes me feel better.

 

If you want to collect all pages. Go for it. Whatever makes you happy.

 

This is as profound as I get.

Edited August 14, 2012 by Rodey

[Bird]

No, buy quanitity. In fact, I am selling right now. :kidaround

 

Buy for enjoyment and not investment and buy quality over quantity are rules to live by. After 20 years I still grab tons of those quickie $100 pieces and bemoan my lack of more 4 figure ones. Heck, I should have some 5 figure ones for sure instead of the HUNDREDS of cheaper ones I have now. Live and learn.

[alxjhnsn]

Sean,

 

If I really learned from my mistakes, I'd be richer and better looking.

[mister_not_so_nice]

I'm still waiting for someone to define "QUALITY" for me.

Because what I think it means is obviously different than what others think it means

[Kevin76]

I'm still waiting for someone to define "QUALITY" for me.

Because what I think it means is obviously different than what others think it means

 

Quality is stuff like Neal Adams Batman cover and slashes, Bernie Wrightson Swamp Thing cover/spalshes, Bolland Killing Joke pages, Frank Miller DD/ Dark Knight pages ect.. you get the idea. What did you think we meant?

[malvin]

I'm still waiting for someone to define "QUALITY" for me.

Because what I think it means is obviously different than what others think it means

 

Quality is stuff like Neal Adams Batman cover and slashes, Bernie Wrightson Swamp Thing cover/spalshes, Bolland Killing Joke pages, Frank Miller DD/ Dark Knight pages ect.. you get the idea. What did you think we meant?

 

and you have multiple examples of each of those but of course you can't show it since it violates your rules right?

 

Malvin

[CollectingFool]

I'm still waiting for someone to define "QUALITY" for me.

 

Quality is something someone else thinks will go up in value.

 

 

[Weird Paper]

I'm still waiting for someone to define "QUALITY" for me.

Because what I think it means is obviously different than what others think it means

 

Quality is stuff like Neal Adams Batman cover and slashes, Bernie Wrightson Swamp Thing cover/spalshes, Bolland Killing Joke pages, Frank Miller DD/ Dark Knight pages ect.. you get the idea. What did you think we meant?

 

and you have multiple examples of each of those but of course you can't show it since it violates your rules right?

 

Malvin

(thumbs u I seem to recall doing this little dance with Kevin once before. Till I see the goods, all the bluster is just that. Edited August 16, 2012 by Weird Paper

[alxjhnsn]

I'm still waiting for someone to define "QUALITY" for me.

 

Mike, I suspect our definitions are going to be pretty aligned.

 

For me,

• A quality piece is one that I feel best represents the artist's work on the subjects that I most associate with the artist - published or not.
  
• A marketable piece is one that I feel can be sold easily and likely at an increased price.

Market appeal doesn't make a page/drawing quality to me - it's subject, execution, artist do. I have a few pieces - for example, a Swan/Superman, a Colan/DD&BW, a Cardy/Bat Lash, etc. - that I think are quality. They probably won't ever have huge resale values or even be very liquid by the time my daughters sell them, but by my standard they are quality pieces.

 

I'd say the "goes up in value definition" is definitely one that lots of people use, but I'd call those pieces "marketable."

 

Of course, a "quality" piece may be "marketable," but that's not a requirement.

[mister_not_so_nice]

I'm still waiting for someone to define "QUALITY" for me.

Because what I think it means is obviously different than what others think it means

 

Quality is stuff like Neal Adams Batman cover and slashes, Bernie Wrightson Swamp Thing cover/spalshes, Bolland Killing Joke pages, Frank Miller DD/ Dark Knight pages ect.. you get the idea. What did you think we meant?

 

In my 15+ years of collecting OA I have never once had the desire to own a page from that list you provided.

 

And is this really the advice to new collectors? Buy Bolland, Wrightson, Frank Miller and only splashes and covers? There are THOUSANDS of great artists but only a small handful are "quality"?

 

I think art and music have a strong parallel where "popular" and "quality" are not always synonymous. I don't let anyone tell me what music I should like and I feel the same about the art I collect. I just took a browse through the latest CLink auction offerings and recognize quite a few "quality" pieces that have made the rounds from "NEW IN YOUR OA COLLECTION" to most viewed/commented on CAF and now on to CLink. The cycle of "quality" continues.

I just picked up a complete issue from an artist and I couldn't be happier. His name is unimportant to anyone but me, so I won't bother to mention it. But I will mention the price for all 38 pages and cover was a mere fraction of the other stuff mentioned.