Newbie purchasing original art seeking guidance 0

[Bretd]

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?