Jose Gonzalez Vampirella Art Day!

[delekkerste]

Just got in two more pieces this morning - luckily I happened to have my digital camera at work! Here's the first piece - the frontispiece to Vampirella #43 featuring most of the Vampi cast, by the master, Jose Gonzalez! It was also reprinted in the book "The Warren Companion":

 

[delekkerste]

And here's the second piece - the splash page to Vampirella #29, also by Gonzalez. I'm glad to finally get a nice pen & ink splash featuring a nice, large image of Vampi:

 

[Jayman]

Just got in two more pieces this morning - luckily I happened to have my digital camera at work! Here's the first piece - the frontispiece to Vampirella #43 featuring most of the Vampi cast, by the master, Jose Gonzalez! It was also reprinted in the book "The Warren Companion":

 

 

VERY nice to both pieces!

Regarding the one above, I think I somehow like it better with the word balloons missing!

[grider67]

Wow those are awesome.

 

Congratz!

[Steve Morger]

Love the 29 splash. We should start a series of all the splashes. Between us, we'd have a number of them. Keep them coming. Always up to see some nice Gonzalez artwork. Best, Steve.

[Mighty Hal]

Nobody...NOBODY...did Vampi like Gonzalez. So sweet!

[october]

Very nice!

 

Speaking of underappreciated Spanish/Latin/Mexican artists, do you happen to have anything by Esteban Maroto? His Dracula stuff from the New English Library is great, especially the cover to the Warren TPB. I figure if anyone here has any of his OA, it would be you, seeing as how you are into the Warren artists...

[Steve Morger]

I've got a couple of his stories, including one Dracula story. Don't have that one scanned at the moment but did post this to my CAF gallery: http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryRoom.asp?GSub=4335 -- one of my favorites from Mr. Maroto. He's another one on my list to try to bring out for Super-Con in the year's ahead. Enjoy. Best, Steve.

[october]

I've got a couple of his stories, including one Dracula story. Don't have that one scanned at the moment but did post this to my CAF gallery: http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryRoom.asp?GSub=4335 -- one of my favorites from Mr. Maroto. He's another one on my list to try to bring out for Super-Con in the year's ahead. Enjoy. Best, Steve.

 

Wow. Absolutely incredible. Too bad he is largely unrecognized in the comic community.

[Steve Morger]

He is only unrecognized in the new generation of art collectors. I think it's pretty safe to say that Maroto is well known to most collectors over 30. Besides his Warren work, he did stuff for Marvel (his Satana in Vampire Tales #3 is absolutely amazing -- unfortunately in a collection where it will never to see the light of day again), Topps (Lady Rawhide), Crossgen and DC. His style apparently doesn't "fit" with current editors but his work kicks major butt. Always amazing to think how many newer collectors have no clue about many of the greats of yesteryear. (And, yes, we were all newbies once -- took me a long time to discover many of the greats before my time -- Raboy, Meskin, Robinson and the list goes on).

[delekkerste]

Very nice!

 

Speaking of underappreciated Spanish/Latin/Mexican artists, do you happen to have anything by Esteban Maroto? His Dracula stuff from the New English Library is great, especially the cover to the Warren TPB. I figure if anyone here has any of his OA, it would be you, seeing as how you are into the Warren artists...

 

Thanks!

 

I have a Maroto complete story from Creepy #52 and a couple of random pages, including a Red Sonja page from Savage Sword of Conan #1 (one of my absolute favorite pages in my collection). You can see them here:

 

http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryRoom.asp?GSub=24292

 

Another collector I know, Joshua Wilton, has some nice Maroto stuff:

 

http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryDetail.asp?GCat=13935

 

Steve, though, is the Dean of Warren art collectors...I bet he's got some great Maroto stuff not in his CAF gallery.

[delekkerste]

This just arrived today, fresh from the Robert Edward Auctions sale that ended a week and a half ago. Here's the description of the piece from the REA catalog:

 

In the early 1980s, Jose "Pepe" Gonzalez produced a series of approximately thirty Vampirella pinups, which were used as the backdrops for the table of contents pages in Vampirella. These works are widely recognized by collectors as the most desirable and definitive studies of Vampirella ever produced. They are as highly regarded by many collectors as original Vampirella cover art, and in fact are considerably rarer simply because so few were produced, and fewer still have survived. These masterpieces of modern pinup art are in a class by themselves. The offered artwork is one of what was at one time the largest collection of Gonzalez Vampirella pinups to ever be assembled, which at its peak numbered ten pieces. Only a few known pieces escaped inclusion in this collection, suggesting that there may be as few as thirteen or possibly fourteen examples of Gonzalez Vampirella table of contents pinup artwork in existence in the entire collecting world. This is a simply stunning and perfect example of Vampirella art. It is also the very last of the Gonzalez pinups from this extraordinary holding. Assessing quality is subjective, but this piece was intentionally saved for last as the very best of all Vampirella pinups. This work was used as the backdrop to the title page of a 1982 Vampirella issue. It is in perfect condition, executed in pencils on white Bristol, signed and dated 1981. Dimensions: 20 x 14.25 inches.

 

[Steve Morger]

Very nice. Don't know that I would agree that it's the best one but definitely one of the nicer ones. I still like the one on the ledge that you got as part of the trade we did. Congratulations.

[Bonds25]

Great piece Gene - you're building up quite the collection of Vampirella art!

[SignatureSelect]

Heritage had 2 nice gonzalez marlyn monroe pin ups the other day. one sold for over 5000. I knew his art was expensive but I was unaware how expensive. He is truely an amazing artist. I wish somebody would bring him out for a con.

[delekkerste]

Very nice. Don't know that I would agree that it's the best one but definitely one of the nicer ones. I still like the one on the ledge that you got as part of the trade we did. Congratulations.

 

Thanks for the kind comments, Steve (and Matt)! Not sure I would necessarily argue that it's the best one, either - there are a few others, including the #39 that you mentioned, that I like better - though, I think this and a couple other of the later pin-ups are probably his best work from a purely artistic perspective. They are much tighter and more detailed than his earlier pin-ups and he works magic with his tone and shading. There was an incredible unpublished Vampi pin-up that REA auctioned in maybe 2004 or 2005 (where she's turned sideways and staring to the right) - I wonder who ended up with that one; it's perhaps, artistically, the best of all the Vampi pin-ups IMHO.

[delekkerste]

Heritage had 2 nice gonzalez marlyn monroe pin ups the other day. one sold for over 5000. I knew his art was expensive but I was unaware how expensive. He is truely an amazing artist. I wish somebody would bring him out for a con.

 

Very interesting that one of the Marilyns went for over $5K and the other one went for less than $1K. Guess somebody really, really liked the former piece! Though, it was probably a bargain compared to the $15 million plus that Andy Warhol's "Lemon Marilyn" is expected to fetch at next week's Christie's auction.

 

Gonzalez's art has definitely been getting more expensive; these Vampi pin-ups have really escalated in price the past few years and the pages that get auctioned on eBay and Heritage continue to fetch strong prices.

 

I would also love to see Gonzalez make it to a convention Stateside, though I think health problems have made that difficult. Still, if anyone can pull it off, it's Steve Morger! I'd definitely make it out to Wondercon for that show...!

[Steve Morger]

I've tried to get Gonzalez over the last two years but have been told health problems prevented it. If I ever succeed, be sure to go to Super-Con, not WonderCon if you want to see him. This year we do have Sanjulian who is doing some very nice work nowadays as well.

[grandz-migration]

I've tried to get Gonzalez over the last two years but have been told health problems prevented it. If I ever succeed, be sure to go to Super-Con, not WonderCon if you want to see him. This year we do have Sanjulian who is doing some very nice work nowadays as well.

 

Steve,

 

I've been told through our con's contact person that Pepe is

battling Cancer; have you been told this as-well? He is a highly

respected artist, and would receive a standing ovation at whichever

Con he would be a featured guest.

 

I would LOVE to meet Sanjulian at Wondercon ( if my schedule opens up ).

 

It is a pleasure and a great inspiration for artist' of all abilities

to study their ability.

[Mighty Hal]

The REA piece is mind-blowing. Incredible. And this is being written by a guy that refuses to collect pencilled art. For the REA piece, I would make a gloriously happy exception.

 

From an artistic perspective (dollar values being equal), is there anyone here that wouldn't prefer the Gonzalez piece to Warhol's 'Lemon Marilyn'?