Can someone explain sketch covers to me?

[devilsrain]

Can someone explain sketch covers to me?

 

Isn’t the paper awful?

 

Doesn’t it have staple holes?

 

Doesn’t it make an artist feel weird to be drawing on a book full of someone else’s work and with those creators’ names on the cover?

 

…especially an older, established pro with plenty of his own books out there?

 

…or when an artist is not associated with that book’s character?

 

…and draws something completely unrelated to the logo on the book? Is there a paper shortage? :-)

 

How do you display the full cover illos? Do you remove the staples and interior pages and just frame the cover? Or is there an added value of having the book intact as a one-off variant? If yes, is this why people get theirs CGC’ed with signatures verified? (Tangent: Aren’t slabbed books like buying giant comic-sized trading cards? Was CGC inadvertently responsible for the collapse of the comic book trading card market?

 

Why have anyone other than the creators of that particular issue sign it? (i.e. Why have Stan Lee sign a Superman comic? OK, bad example. He is Stan Lee. He gets to sign anything he wants.)

 

I think I understand the charity “event” covers from Hero Initiative such as Hellboy 100, etc. After all, it is for charity. You need a big milestone to build momentum around.

 

What was the first sketch cover ever published?

 

I see some very nice commissions for auction recently that I wouldn’t mind owning. But is this a fad that is going to just annoy me in 10 years when I look back at them in my collection? Would I rather they were just on blank Bristol board? If I display them, isn’t seeing those other creator’s names on the cover just going to drive my neurotic brain crazy? Wouldn’t I rather spend that same money on a published or commissioned piece of that artist’s work? And then spend the CGC fee to ask a graphic designer to put together a logo overlay?

 

Or is this something the artists themselves are pushing? Is it another avenue to gain some side income that has only popped up in recent years, not unlike the lucrative digital con print? (Which I think are terrific and have oodles of.)

 

I am not a judo purist. So please don’t take the above as snark. I really want to hear from those who actively collect in this niche of the hobby and why it excites you.

 

OK, that’s a lie. I am about to spend money and I want your help in justifying it. After all, isn’t that why these forums are here?

 

 

Do it. Give in to the dark side of art collecting.

 

Look at it this way. You have the advantage of the already evolved sketch cover market. There aren't 3 sketch covers to choose from anymore. So yea originally people would get characters on conflicting covers because of the lack of options.

 

Is the art really good? Does it match up with the cover? Difficult to obtain? Right price? Then pull the trigger.

 

Most of the questions you asked can only be answered by you but if the art speaks to you then go for it. Or do it the hard way, go to the con, commission the artist, hope he finishes it on time, pray it comes out good & CGC it.

 

Good luck.

[JadeGiant]

I didn’t “get” the sketch cover thing at first but I am coming around. Not as an investment vehicle, but for collecting commissioned art I can see the benefits. I am not going that route as my commissions are primarily 11x17 but I can see the appeal if I were just starting down the path of getting commissions.

[Lucky Baru]

I just got my Todd McFarlane sketch cover (Walking Dead #115 blank variant) back. Book was graded 9.8, has Todd's signature, and a blood splatter he drew on it. Pretty happy with it.

 

Since it was done by another company I'm not gonna show it encapsulated but I will show this:

 

[MedicAR]

Can someone explain sketch covers to me?

 

Isn’t the paper awful?

 

It varies publisher to publisher and even title to title.

 

Doesn’t it have staple holes?

 

Assuming it was actually attached to a comic, yes. But then, if it is not attached it's not really a cover anymore is it?

 

Doesn’t it make an artist feel weird to be drawing on a book full of someone else’s work and with those creators’ names on the cover?

 

I've never had a complaint, but then I'm on the wrong side of the table to answer that question.

 

…especially an older, established pro with plenty of his own books out there?

 

Herb Trimpe, Dick Ayers, Irwin Hasen, Sheldon Moldoff, George Tuska, Joe Simon, and Gene Colan didn't seem to have a problem working on them. Neal Adams has certainly embraced it. The Romitas have done some. Arthur Suydam, Joe Sinnott, Rob Liefeld, Mike Zeck, Matt Wagner, Russ Heath, Jeff Smith, Frank Brunner, Val Maverick, Keith Pollard, Arvell Jones, Bill Sienkiewicz, Bob Layton, Michael Golden, Jim Starlin, James O'Barr, Bob McLeod, George Pérez, Eric Powell, Bill Morrison, Ken Kelly, Peter Bagge, Steranko, and tons of others have done them, so I am left to assume that they do not feel too weird about them.

 

…or when an artist is not associated with that book’s character?

 

Having the artist create an association is fun. With the Fallen Son books, I tried to get the artists to do something related to Captain America. They did their character holding his shield, standing over his grave, or in a Cap costume. I got a few perplexed expressions at first, handing them a Captain America book when they aren't known for working on the character, but when I made my request, they generally lit up and had fun with it.

 

…and draws something completely unrelated to the logo on the book? Is there a paper shortage? :-)

 

See above.

 

How do you display the full cover illos? Do you remove the staples and interior pages and just frame the cover?

 

No. We all have our own thing, but if I have gone to the trouble to find a blank and the artist to work on it, I want to keep it as nice as possible. I can only think of a single sketch cover in my collection that has one connected image on both covers.

 

Or is there an added value of having the book intact as a one-off variant?

 

By definition, any hand drawn sketch is a "one-off" so I'm not entirely sure I understand the question. I guess it depends on your taste. I like the original artwork in a format and size that I already collect. The published OA is great and if I had the money, it's all I would buy.

 

If yes, is this why people get theirs CGC’ed with signatures verified?

 

I get them CGC'd to certify the signature and sketch. Signature verification is done after the fact and is a service that CGC does not offer. As a bonus, if anything should happen to me and my family has to move my collection without my input, they have the certification as authentic and the work is easily identifiable for listing them.

 

(Tangent: Aren’t slabbed books like buying giant comic-sized trading cards? Was CGC inadvertently responsible for the collapse of the comic book trading card market?

 

Why have anyone other than the creators of that particular issue sign it? (i.e. Why have Stan Lee sign a Superman comic? OK, bad example. He is Stan Lee. He gets to sign anything he wants.)

 

I think I understand the charity “event” covers from Hero Initiative such as Hellboy 100, etc. After all, it is for charity. You need a big milestone to build momentum around.

 

You've changed subjects, moving from sketches to signatures. Personally, I generally prefer a direct link between the book/characters and the signers. Exceptions would be things like anniversary issues, special issues or particularly nice covers. One example that snapped to mind is my Captain America #601. It's a great cover by Marko Djurdjevic featuring a character co-created by Joe Simon with interior art by Gene Colan. I got two legends and the cover artist on one book and tied them all together (for me) quite nicely.

 

 

Not everyone agrees with this rationale and that's fine. A bizarre exception is the one you pointed out. Stan Lee literally signs everything, including Deadpool books, Wolverine books, and Action Comics #1 reprints. Frankly, I don't get it and have even grown irritated by the idea. Sure, he is the public face of Marvel Comics, so technically he could sign any Marvel book. But as I wrote earlier, I generally prefer a direct connection. Stan signs Amazing Spider-Man #388? Fine. Stan signs the first issue of the Wolverine mini-series? Why? He didn't have a hand in the character's creation, didn't edit the book, and had nothing to do with the story inside. Even the Big Bang Theory had a joke about having him sign a Batman comic. I think that over the long run, people getting Stan Lee's signature on random stuff done as an investment will be sorely disappointed as people will want his signature on something with which he had a connection, even a loose connection. New FF? Yes. First Cable? No.

 

What was the first sketch cover ever published?

 

Fallen Son, at least on a large scale.

 

I see some very nice commissions for auction recently that I wouldn’t mind owning. But is this a fad that is going to just annoy me in 10 years when I look back at them in my collection? Would I rather they were just on blank Bristol board? If I display them, isn’t seeing those other creator’s names on the cover just going to drive my neurotic brain crazy? Wouldn’t I rather spend that same money on a published or commissioned piece of that artist’s work? And then spend the CGC fee to ask a graphic designer to put together a logo overlay?

 

We're eight years in now and I still love my sketch covers. Some for the art, some for the story about getting the art. If having other artists names on the cover bothers you, don't buy/collect them. Problem solved. I like that I can get the character that I want from the artist that I want without spending years searching for the right piece or having to take out a second mortgage to afford it. They also don't require a whole new system of preservation, storage, and inventory. I love OA, but I only dabble for these reasons. Sketch covers really work for me, if they're not for you, that's fine.

 

Or is this something the artists themselves are pushing? Is it another avenue to gain some side income that has only popped up in recent years, not unlike the lucrative digital con print? (Which I think are terrific and have oodles of.)

 

I don't think the artists are pushing it. It appears that Marvel marketing was the real impetus behind these, creating yet another variant to make it look like an issue is selling better than it really is. While corporate greed may have created them, though, they have really grown in the market. A DC exec once said they would never do blank covers but now they are in on it, too. Some indies have done some blanks. Douglas Paszkiewicz comes to mind, creating limited edition blanks to sell at shows.

 

Think of sketch covers as being like digital prints. Some artists are resistant because of the time it takes to draw them, keeping the from meeting and greeting fans. Others have been taken advantage of, doing a book for a "big fan" only to see it on eBay four hours later. Artists like Neal Adams and Arthur Suydam effectively put an end to the secondary market on their stuff by pricing them at the secondary prices to start with. I'm frustrated that I didn't save a dime by buying direct from the source, but I also understand.

 

I am not a judo purist. So please don’t take the above as snark. I really want to hear from those who actively collect in this niche of the hobby and why it excites you.

 

OK, that’s a lie. I am about to spend money and I want your help in justifying it. After all, isn’t that why these forums are here?

 

 

I hope I've answered your questions to your satisfaction and without being snarky. I've been into these thing since the beginning!

[alxjhnsn]

Great answers.

[Meeley Man]

So, has BCarter27 had sketch covers explained to him by this point, or does he still need further explanations?

 

[MedicAR]

He covered a lot of ground in that first post! I didn't want to miss anything!

 

 

[alxjhnsn]

A man after my own heart.

[BCarter27]

Thanks for all the comprehensive responses. I feel like I have a better understanding of "the dark side of art collecting" now!

 

I definitely feel like the ability to have the book CGC'ed and certified is a plus, but that seems to weigh more heavily for the collectors here who are perhaps a bit more book-oriented than I am at this point.

 

I think ultimately I will stick with "plain" sketches and commissions when dealing direct with an artist. The flexibility in display options appeals to me a bit more. But I am not ruling out any existing sketch covers that pop up for sale. When a piece works, it just works, right?

 

Thanks for sharing. You all have some amazing collections that you obviously have worn out a lot of shoe leather to get. Keep 'em coming! Maybe we need a "This week on your sketch cover" thread. We can call it "Savage Vandalization." :-)

 

 

[BCarter27]

…or when an artist is not associated with that book’s character?

 

Having the artist create an association is fun. With the Fallen Son books, I tried to get the artists to do something related to Captain America. They did their character holding his shield, standing over his grave, or in a Cap costume. I got a few perplexed expressions at first, handing them a Captain America book when they aren't known for working on the character, but when I made my request, they generally lit up and had fun with it.

 

Yeah, I think tying into the book is more to my taste too. Great idea.

[Garf]

Seeing as I was posting these in the TWD thread just now alongside the other ones being posted there here you go...

 

I kinda had more fun with the artists and with friends and people at the cons whilst getting these done both for myself and my daughters than just about anything else... I'm not really into sketch covers so I don't take them seriously. Having a bit of fun is another good reason to carry a few blanks at a con.

 

 

[rtecbot]

You can always go for both sketch cover and original art.

Framing costs are more expensive than slabbing costs though

[BCarter27]

http://www.societyillustrators.org/The-Museum/2015/Batman/Chip-Kidd-Presents--Batman-Black-and-White--The-Sketch-Covers.aspx

 

I just got slapped by Chip Kidd. :-)

 

Definitely going to check this out.

[JadeGiant]

Enjoyable thread. As I come more around to the idea of sketch covers, I think the hobby will hold a place for these collectors to flourish. For those of us in the hobby before they came on the scene it probably is too different from how we collected to date and the OCD gene kicks in. I don’t have any myself but I do have a small stack of blanks that call out to me a bit. My son is 9 and has totes his own sketch book around cons. He loves getting artists to draw for him and think this is something I could see him enjoying.

 

Also, I was at a recent con and saw 11x17 boards with title logos printed on them – looked like a hybrid of commissions and sketch covers.

 

[vodou]

Also, I was at a recent con and saw 11x17 boards with title logos printed on them – looked like a hybrid of commissions and sketch covers.

This tells me the market is still having a hard time absorbing covers/art that have trade dress (and word balloons) added digitally. Blank covers meant to be sketched on are the same thing, though I didn't see that until now. Maybe it will take two generations of new collectors to get over this 'hump'?