Original Comic art - Some help please

[founder81]

I'm posting this here becuase I've seen discussions on comic art in this section more then any other.

The wife and I have recently decided to decorate our walls with something nice but still comic related. Orginal art was the perfect choice for us.

Ebay is going to be out main source, if this is a bad idea, please let me know.

Question time

What qualities should I look for?

What type of questions should I ask the seller?

What is a good price range? (I know this has a alot of factors, such as age of the art and popularity of the artist/character. I would like to know a general guideline if possible)

What is a Color Guide and how does it differ from B&W original art?

I've noticed some non marvel/non dc original art with no text, is this normal?

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It's taken me years to get a firm grasp on comics themselves, any heads up on original art will be much appreciated.

Thank You.

[MWGallaher]

I'm not an expert, but here are some of my observations and advice:
What is a good price range? (I know this has a alot of factors, such as age of the art and popularity of the artist/character. I would like to know a general guideline if possible)
You can find decent originals in the $35-$100 range. A lot of Bronze Age art (1970's-1980's) can be had in that price range, if you're happy with work by the less popular artists, and some even older art can be found at those prices. You won't find much in that range if you're interested in legendary artists like Jack Kirby or Neal Adams, or modern era favorites like Todd MacFarlane or Jim Lee, but you can find plenty of Sal Buscema, Jim Aparo, Herb Trimpe, Ron Wilson, George Tuska, etc. Prices tend to skyrocket for cover art, even for the less popular artists. I much prefer interior art, since I enjoy seeing the panel-to-panel continuity, and because interior art is often a much purer example of a given artist's style, since covers are often done based on another artist's sketches (for example, many DC covers were based on sketches by Infantino or Andru, and thus exhibit characteristics that aren't typical of the credited artists, such as composition or poses).

What is a Color Guide and how does it differ from B&W original art?
A color guide is a copy of the original art. It's usually at printed size, rather than oversized (original art, depending on its age, is typically 50 to 100% larger than the size of a printed comic book page). Colorists in the past would use watercolors to paint the colorguides to show how the printed comic should look in color. The colors were limited to those that could be printed using various percentages of cyan, magenta, and yellow. They are often covered with arcane notations that indicate exactly what combinations of these colors should be used in a particular portion of the art. These are obsolete now that most or all coloring is done on a computer.
Similar to color guides are cover proofs. These are full-color copies of a comic book cover prepared by the printer (before actually beginning the print run) so that the company can approve to proceed with printing. In other words, if the printer has colored Superman's cape blue on the cover, DC could say "Whoa! Don't print this until you fix it!"

I've noticed some non marvel/non dc original art with no text, is this normal?
It is typical of recent art, including Marvel & DC, that the originals have no lettering. Nowadays, the lettering is done on a computer and applied digitally to scans of the artwork, it's not literally cut out and pasted on the inked art board. I prefer old-school art, where the letterer used pen and ink to write the text and sound effects directly onto the art. Comics are words and pictures, and original art minus the words suffers, in my eyes.

[InfoBroker]

What is a Color Guide and how does it differ from B&W original art?

The color guide is a photostat copy of the original B&W which is colored (usually using Dr. Martin color inks) which is then used as a guide for the engraver at the printers to do the "real" coloring. It is reduced to original size, and not usually available with the original B&W artwork. With current computer coloring techniques is not used very much anymore.


I've noticed some non marvel/non dc original art with no text, is this normal?


It is now that the lettering is done using computers, and that will include Marvel and DC material as well. Very few comics are hand lettered anymore.

Older comics might also be missing lettering if they were "pasted" to the artwork for whatever reasons. Covers may also be missing stuff that was pasted on for production purposes. This might or might not include the logo, company branding items (like Marvel's upper left hand corner box), prices or TM markings, the Comics Code Seal of Approval, and those lettering related balloons. The "paste" is usually rubber cement, and it is a nasty glue that yellows paper and loose all sticking capabilities over time.

A nice artist/auctioneer will usually include any production related overlays. I have a nifty one for a Hulk comic that I will try to take some pictures of over the holidays and display here.

As for eBay. Well its one choice. Some artists have their own website gallery, and others have an agent who does all the selling for a percentage.

Here's Brent Anderson's Gallery. (http://www.brentandersonart.com/) I keep hanging there hoping to see the First Family zipping overhead.

Here's Alex Ross' gallery (http://www.alexrossart.com/).

Those two sites also provide insight into how expensive original art can get.

I have found going to conventions and visiting the artist's tables a great place to see and buy and even cooler still make contact with the artists and arrange for commisoned artwork.

A few months back, I bought some really nice drawings (http://smarbaby.livejournal.com/2006/10/24/) from Katie Cooke (http://216.197.116.251/) that I had specially commisioned. It should come as a surprise to almost no one, that they are all Astro City (http://www.astrocity.us) related. She has a nifty daily blog (that I am behind on of late) that is fun to read as well. If you go back to the December time frame you will see the other ones she did for me. I have three so far, and I need to make contact with her for about ten more that I want to add to the set. Once done, they are going to make a great "rogues gallery" in my computer den.

These are hand colored by the artist. Another bonus to commissioned work.

Several artists, like Gene Colan will also do complete "redos" of their printed works.

There are other auction "engines" for artwork as well. Maybe Kimosabe will share some of the ones he uses.

-jb the (still a Smashy-Hulk fan) ib -

[Lone Ranger]

Ebay is going to be out main source, if this is a bad idea, please let me know.

I've had plenty of success buying original art on eBay - but I have bought through other sources as well (conventions, on-line dealers, Heritage Auctions)

What qualities should I look for?

Well - I alway think you should just buy what you like. I've got a list of favourite artists and that's usually what I target. I really like the idea of owning a page from a book I loved as a kid.

What type of questions should I ask the seller?

Ask if there are any missing paste-ups etc... also if there is any water damage or significant tearing. Paper quality may also be an issue, so try to see a clear scan that will show any yellowing before you purchase. If a lot of glue was use in the process, you can often get a ton of yellowing on the page. It's just a matter of finding a page that still looks attractive to your eyes.

What is a good price range? (I know this has a alot of factors, such as age of the art and popularity of the artist/character. I would like to know a general guideline if possible)
Like MWG said, there's plenty of great stuff well below $100 - sometimes buying multiple pages at once can get you a great deal on a 'per page' basis. Covers are indeed expensive - hard to find for under $500. I've got 60+ pages of original art, but only two covers.

What is a Color Guide and how does it differ from B&W original art?
It's just on example of what is called 'production art' - which can also include approval covers etc... A colour guide should cost a fraction of the cost of the actual original art page.

I've noticed some non marvel/non dc original art with no text, is this normal?
No, not for older stuff. For new stuff, it's pretty normal. If it's older, I'd be worried that it was just a photostat with words removed for a foreign language edition.

[founder81]

Thank you all for the fast replies. Everything you said is very helpful.

The pages I've seen with no text have been from valiant comics of the 90's. Mostly old Solar pages. I'll have to look into them to see if I can find info if they should have text.

I phrased my one question wrong, instead of "Is ebay an ok place" I should have said "I know of ebay, where else can I look, preferably online, to find original pages"

So far, with the exception of Steve Rude, I only look into characters. Impulse and Spider-man being on the top of the list. Spider-man is easy to find, given 1,000's of pages with him on it.

I'm shocked at how often I see pages form the 70's (and earlier) up, I figured this stuff was either sold, destroyed, or lost long ago.

Thanks again for all the help, I'm off to search "original comic pages".

[MWGallaher]

One place to look is http://www.theartistschoice.com
Proprietor Spencer Beck is agent to a lot of artists and has a lot to offer at pretty reasonable prices. Lots of stuff there around the $50 mark, including huge helpings of work by the likes of Aparo, Giffen, Garcia-Lopez, Morales, Guice, Giordano, Layton, and many more.

[parrish]

http://www.comicartfans.com has a good selection of original art. They complie several different sources.

[Lone Ranger]

Along with those mentioned, I've had good experiences with:

http://www.romitaman.com/

http://www.albertmoy.com/

and

http://www.anthonysnyder.com/default.asp

I've never seen any Valiant original art (or read any of their comics for that matter) so I don't know if the lettering should be there.

Steve Rude stuff can be pricey - I've got a couple of Moth pages and they were closer to $100 than $50, IIRC.

[Aaron King]

Just to add another URL, here's http://www.splashpageart.com. It's a legit site (none of the art was stolen... most of it is directly from the featured artists) and has a bunch of cheap sketches and pages. Mostly modern artists, but still cool. My friend has bought some things from them and it all worked out really well for him.

[Rob Allen]

I was going to mention www.comicartfans.com but I see that parrish has done so already. That site is a treasure trove; it's run by and for comic art fans. Many collectors and dealers post scans of their art there, with the ability to say whether the art is for sale and for what price. It might rival eBay as a source of original art.

Many people who frequent comicartfans.com are also on the 'comicart-l' group at Yahoo: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/comicart-l/
This is a very active group, so if you don't want your inbox inundated, choose the 'no email' option and read the group on the website. There is a FAQ for the group; it's a few years out of date but still useful: http://www.musial.org/comicart/faq/

Have fun with this new aspect of your hobby!

Edit: the URL for the FAQ doesn't work anymore. I'll try to find it somewhere online and will post again if I find it.

[Kirk G]

Watch how you mount the original artwork. I understand placing it under glass requires an airspace between the work and the glass, hense , the use of matt board.

I once bought a color guide that had been advertised as "original artwork" on ebay. I was immediately dissatisfied, but I had purchased the work. Upon re-reading the description, it was clear that the colorist had regarded his work as original artwork, even though the expression is typically reserved for the pen and ink black and white work. I felt I had been mislead, and never have purchased another ever.

[Sir Tim Drake]

Watch how you mount the original artwork. I understand placing it under glass requires an airspace between the work and the glass, hense , the use of matt board.

I once bought a color guide that had been advertised as "original artwork" on ebay. I was immediately dissatisfied, but I had purchased the work. Upon re-reading the description, it was clear that the colorist had regarded his work as original artwork, even though the expression is typically reserved for the pen and ink black and white work. I felt I had been mislead, and never have purchased another ever.

I think that's deceptive advertising. Even if the colorist genuinely believed he was selling original artwork, the item he was selling does not fall within the generally agreed-upon definition of "original artwork." It's like if you and I agreed that I would sell you a fish, and then I delivered a snake to you instead of a fish. Even if I sincerely believed that the snake was a fish, that's no excuse.

[benday-dot]

I think that's deceptive advertising. Even if the colorist genuinely believed he was selling original artwork, the item he was selling does not fall within the generally agreed-upon definition of "original artwork." It's like if you and I agreed that I would sell you a fish, and then I delivered a snake to you instead of a fish. Even if I sincerely believed that the snake was a fish, that's no excuse.

Maybe Johnny Cochrane could get you off if you delivered an eel ;)

Seriously though, I was thinking, like you Sir Tim, that it's hard to accept what Kirk received as "original art" under any accepted understanding of the term.

[Lone Ranger]

founder

I just spotted this Colan/Howard page on eBay - not sure about the condition. I've picked up Colan pages for under $100 - but pages from books like Dracula and Howard tend to go for much more.

http://cgi.ebay.ca/HOWARD-THE-DUCK-30-GENE-COLAN-ORIGINAL-ART-NR_W0QQitemZ200123862036QQihZ010QQcategoryZ14009QQ rdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[Red Oak Kid]

Artist Bob Mcleod has original art for sale and he does commission work.

http://bobmcleod.com/

I've purchased art from him and it was a completely positive experience.

[K'Nort]

Someone already mentioned Albert Moy. I've bought from him with no problems.

Another site with a great selection that I've purchased from is Fanfare Sports & Entertainment (http://www.fanfare-se.com/Artists.asp).

Buying directly from the artist at a con is the most fun. But with the oversized pages, it can be a pain (and risky) to get them home.

[founder81]

Thank you all for the links. It's going to take me awhile to look through all that. I'm sure I'll find lots of good (and affordable) stuff.

Curse you all for the links. I'm sure I'll find lots of good (and affordable) stuff. I'm going to drive myself into the poor house. ;)

Lone Ranger
re Howard page - you are a god among men.

About the framing. I have 1 original art page, a page from Damage that heavily featured Impulse. My wife loves Impulse and it made a great christmas gift. I have it in this type of a frame with a poster board behind it (Poster board is just for color)
http://www.michaels.com/art/online/displayProductPage?productNum=fl0083&channelid=

[Slam_Bradley]

Looking around the sites I was amazed at how inexpensive Bob Bolling Little Archie pages are.

[MDG]

Looking around the sites I was amazed at how inexpensive Bob Bolling Little Archie pages are.

Where did you see them?

MDG