First 3 Watchmen covers in Feb HA

[Brian Peck]

HA just posted the covers for Watchmen #1, #2 and #3. No scans yet. What does everyone think? #3 is the weakest and #2 is the strongest artistically but #1 is icon. I think #1 will go crazy. With no scan does anyone know if they are just pen and ink?

 

Watchmen #1

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7073&lotIdNo=104001

 

Watchmen #2

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7073&lotIdNo=104002

 

Watchmen #3

http://comics.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7073&lotIdNo=104004

[Terry Doyle]

They're pen & ink, Brian.

 

Covers 1 through to 12 sold for £17,250 in Sotherby's 3rd comic art auction (1993).

[lb jefferies]

Boom!

[Bronty]

whoa, that'll be a fun auction. I agree #1 should go nuts. I actually really like #1's cover.... once you see the image panned out in the book you understand and appreciate the cover and the symbolism a lot more. On its own it doesn't look like much.

[Brian Peck]

What does everyone think the prices would be for each?

[Bronty]

well to this member of the peanut gallery for these covers (can't afford it and not what I'd buy with the money anyways) - I would say this is an exceptionally difficult set of covers to guess the ending price on.

 

But if I had to guess I'd say

 

#1 225k

#2 75k

#3 40k

 

but it could just as easily be half, or double

[Bronty]

it will also be interesting to see if people wait for various covers from 4-12 as the selling of 1-3 would have me guessing that they will be sold in sets of three per signature auction.

[Bronty]

although, looking at the rest of the covers, none look that strong. I like #12 best after #1. #2 is pretty nice relative to the others so I may have guessed light on that one.

[Bronty]

if my guesses are even halfway correct I'd sure like to be in Hari Naidu's shoes as I'd take MM15 over any of them and it wasn't that long ago hari got that mm15 on heritage

[clemso]

I can appreciate the historic value of these, but artistically these covers are a bit to me.

[heartened]

I can appreciate the historic value of these, but artistically these covers are a bit to me.

 

These covers were available about 4-5 years ago as a set, and almost sold. There's a story behind it, but not worth getting into. At the time, I remeber seeing them and deciding that many are historic but not worth it artistically, with the exception of the #1 and maybe a couple others. So, as a set it became a problem in terms of valuing and pricing. Individually, as heritage is doing, should be a different story. I'll be passing, as the interiors do so much more for me than the covers (Watchmen was very much about the story, and artistic storytelling (panel layouts, composition, perfecting every detail, and the covers therefore don't do it for me). But, surely iconic, and I'm sure the lucky winners will be happy!

 

[tth2]

Guess I`m going to go and have that mid-life crisis after all.

 

Watchmen #1 is comic art that I would actually hang in my living room. Too bad it`s only 10 X 15.

[Nexus]

if my guesses are even halfway correct I'd sure like to be in Hari Naidu's shoes as I'd take MM15 over any of them and it wasn't that long ago hari got that mm15 on heritage

 

Do you mean the MM #15 cover? My understanding is that it was bought by an European collector. I know Hari cleaned up on the interiors, but don't think he got the cover. At least not at the time.

[Nexus]

I can appreciate the historic value of these, but artistically these covers are a bit to me.

 

These covers were available about 4-5 years ago as a set, and almost sold. There's a story behind it, but not worth getting into. At the time, I remeber seeing them and deciding that many are historic but not worth it artistically, with the exception of the #1 and maybe a couple others. So, as a set it became a problem in terms of valuing and pricing. Individually, as heritage is doing, should be a different story. I'll be passing, as the interiors do so much more for me than the covers (Watchmen was very much about the story, and artistic storytelling (panel layouts, composition, perfecting every detail, and the covers therefore don't do it for me). But, surely iconic, and I'm sure the lucky winners will be happy!

 

Yes, it was 3 years ago. At the time, they were shopped privately as a set. Only one collector was interested enough in them as a set to step up. (Unfortunately for the buyer, the deal went sideways.) The price at the time was a record-setter. Now, it'd be a "bargain".

 

The covers are most interesting to me as a set, but no doubt they'll realize more when auctioned individually. Over the years, I've come to appreciate them for NOT being typical comic book covers (with these covers acting as both the first panel of each issue and representing the main theme of each issue). So spare as they are, as a WM fan, I sure wouldn't mind having one. For what they'll likely go for, though, I'm happy to have a page or two instead.

[comix4fun]

Guess I`m going to go and have that mid-life crisis after all.

 

Watchmen #1 is comic art that I would actually hang in my living room. Too bad it`s only 10 X 15.

 

 

 

I'd hang it up too. That would be a conversation piece to be sure.

 

It would have been great to see it created larger, but it's standard size. The image area is 10x15...it was most likely created on an 11x17 board like most modern comic art was, so it should be of comparable image size.

[Nexus]

Guess I`m going to go and have that mid-life crisis after all.

 

Watchmen #1 is comic art that I would actually hang in my living room. Too bad it`s only 10 X 15.

 

Best of luck to you, Tim! I love that #1 cover (nostalgia has a lot to do with that, admittedly). It would look great on the wall. 10"X15" actually displays well, imo, especially if framed with a 3" mat.

[heartened]

if my guesses are even halfway correct I'd sure like to be in Hari Naidu's shoes as I'd take MM15 over any of them and it wasn't that long ago hari got that mm15 on heritage

 

Do you mean the MM #15 cover? My understanding is that it was bought by an European collector. I know Hari cleaned up on the interiors, but don't think he got the cover. At least not at the time.

 

That's correct. I have a lot of interior MM art, including 4 of the best pages from issue 15, but did not go for the cover. In retrospect, maybe I should have, as it's been a bit of a regret for me, but at the time I couldn't bring myself to pull the trigger on the cover and all the pages I wanted.

 

[delekkerste]

So spare as they are, as a WM fan, I sure wouldn't mind having one. For what they'll likely go for, though, I'm happy to have a page or two instead.

 

I remember when WM interiors were panned by collectors, as WM was all about the story, not the artwork. Even after the market had reevaluated the merits of the interiors, the covers remained panned by many given that they're sparse and devoid of characters. Clearly there has been some further reevaluation, though, and it will be interesting to see how well these covers, especially the #1, does at auction.

 

All I know is that there are easily a thousand and one things I'd rather spend $225K on (thus far the only guesstimate posted for the #1)...judging from the collector car show I was watching last night, even a lot of vintage Italian supercars are going for less than what some high-end comic art is going for these days. I'm thinking about changing hobbies.

[dem1138]

Its been interesting to see how attitudes have shifted over the years. When the covers were offered around 3 years ago as a set, the general consensus was that the price was too high based on the relative lack of interest on the covers versus the interiors though most agreed that it would be incredible to own all 12 together. It appears that the market has now shifted and the interest in the covers has developed and only increased. The ability to purchase the covers individually will certainly help the final price for all 12 though whatever the #1 sells for will clearly set the bar for the market.

 

I was certain that 2012 was only the start of what we were going to see in 2013 and it only took two days to to reinforce that.

[batman_fan]

I am probably way in the minority here but I didn't care for the watchmen series when it came out (although I bought it). I care even less for the artwork but I definitely wish I had a few pages to sell !