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New podcast/video from Felix Comic Art (UPDATED 1/3/17!)
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1,647 posts in this topic

1 hour ago, Jay Olie Espy said:

Nah, it was a joke, an ironic statement. That was the point, that just because his rep compares him to Jim Lee, it doesn’t mean that it’s a hot stock tip that moves inventory. Ramon’s market has yet to catch up with, say, DWJ or Pitarra, so the dedicated few who buy Ramon’s art have to be buying for some reason other than speculation. I truly believe that the majority of Felix’s clientele who buy Ramon’s art with passion are buying DWJ with equal passion and not necessarily with future dollar signs in their eyeballs; therefore, the art sells itself, it doesn’t need a messenger. 

 

1 hour ago, PhilipB2k17 said:

I saw one collector put up an Extremity page for, probably, less than what Felix sold it for. But it wasn't a flip attempt, I think the guy just needed cash. I didn't see a lot of takers for it, and this was on a Facebook OA group.

I got that page, and yes, exactly as you mention - selling for non art reasons and definitely not profit. I think he lost money on it actually

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5 hours ago, delekkerste said:

Yep, when I read these comparisons of younger talent to older talent, I don't infer anything about the potential for comparable financial gain.  For those who say otherwise, isn't that pretty much implicitly assuming that talent cannot be compared across generations without a discussion of $$$?  I don't agree with that at all.  

As for the question of why make comparisons to well-known (re: expensive) works from the past as opposed to "wonderful but worthless books from the past"...well, how many examples of the latter are there where the collector base/marketplace has somehow overlooked supremely talented artists/works for 30-40 years?  Somehow I don't think saying that Tradd Moore's Venom #150 could be "this generation's Strikeforce: Morituri #20" quite does his work justice.  I think many/most would agree that Tradd is an exceptional talent, so, of course any comparison has to be with a high-profile, very well-regarded artist & book (whose value it is only normal the market will have realized).

In any case, anyone who's listened to Felix's podcasts will have heard the very consistent message he has delivered vis-a-vis speculating and investing in original comic book art loud and clear.   

Hey hey hey, back way the F off of any Strikeforce Morituri shaming Mr. Park.  It's near and dear to my heart.

:makepoint:

lol

 

 

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Wow... I work all day without checking the boards and it's all Jets and Sharks up in here.

 

5 hours ago, delekkerste said:

Yep, when I read these comparisons of younger talent to older talent, I don't infer anything about the potential for comparable financial gain.  For those who say otherwise, isn't that pretty much implicitly assuming that talent cannot be compared across generations without a discussion of $$$?  I don't agree with that at all.  

As for the question of why make comparisons to well-known (re: expensive) works from the past as opposed to "wonderful but worthless books from the past"...well, how many examples of the latter are there where the collector base/marketplace has somehow overlooked supremely talented artists/works for 30-40 years?  Somehow I don't think saying that Tradd Moore's Venom #150 could be "this generation's Strikeforce: Morituri #20" quite does his work justice.  I think many/most would agree that Tradd is an exceptional talent, so, of course any comparison has to be with a high-profile, very well-regarded artist & book (whose value it is only normal the market will have realized).

In any case, anyone who's listened to Felix's podcasts will have heard the very consistent message he has delivered vis-a-vis speculating and investing in original comic book art loud and clear.   


More and more people are turned off by the language of advertisement. Regardless of what Felix means, a growing subset of people are going to assume the worst, because money. More reasonable people may shrug and let it slide, but I think many could realistically say why not blast the message to the masses in the form of images of the art, let it speak for itself. Those of us that enjoy reading commentary on these boards are probably interested to hear Felix compare modern artists to some of the greats of the past, but again, the language of advertisements will ruffle some feathers. 

The only solution... @Nexus has to post more regularly and frequently discuss artists he doesn't rep in positive terms so he can point to that as defense! Or... people could just take him at his word when he tells them what he means... since as far as I know, he's a stand up guy and doesn't have a reputation as a liar.

 

Finally... who the heck compares Tradd to McFarlane? Is it an initials thing?

Half of the time I think I need to come out from under my rock more often, then the remaining half of the time, I hear things like this and feel quite content there.

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12 hours ago, Nexus said:

Please show me the BOOK that sold for $10K. Because that's what you said, "books".

This entire thread is about comic art. "Books" was clearly referencing the specific books you were mentioning such as Dark Knight, Born Again, Dr Strange 55, Year One, etc.

Please stop intentionally misreading intent.

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1 hour ago, SquareChaos said:

More and more people are turned off by the language of advertisement. Regardless of what Felix means, a growing subset of people are going to assume the worst, because money. More reasonable people may shrug and let it slide, but I think many could realistically say why not blast the message to the masses in the form of images of the art, let it speak for itself. Those of us that enjoy reading commentary on these boards are probably interested to hear Felix compare modern artists to some of the greats of the past, but again, the language of advertisements will ruffle some feathers.

 

Yes, I am hyping artists. I am excited by the art, and am making that enthusiasm known. Some will transfer their own feelings, and believe I'm encouraging speculation. I've explained why that isn't the case. If that's not good enough...don't follow me?(shrug)

1 hour ago, SquareChaos said:

The only solution... @Nexus has to post more regularly and frequently discuss artists he doesn't rep in positive terms so he can point to that as defense!

There actually ARE plenty of talented young artists out there. I don't have a monopoly on them!:P But it isn't my job to promote them. My time and energy is devoted to promoting my guys.

1 hour ago, SquareChaos said:

Finally... who the heck compares Tradd to McFarlane? Is it an initials thing?

Some have compared Tradd to Todd in terms of a young guy bringing a new energy to comics, whose style is aesthetically pleasing to a young audience. I can see that...put Tradd on Spidey, and you just might get kids jazzed about comics again.

But otherwise, not so much. Stylistically, Tradd is precision to Todd's chaos. Tradd reminds me more of Michael Golden. Hence, the comparison to Michael Golden.

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4 minutes ago, Nexus said:

Yes, I am hyping artists. I am excited by the art, and am making that enthusiasm known. Some will transfer their own feelings, and believe I'm encouraging speculation. I've explained why that isn't the case. If that's not good enough...don't follow me?(shrug)

I believe you, I actually thought I made that pretty clear with how I wrapped up my comment. But... others don't believe - my only point on this is that they likely never will because of the advertisement element inherent in anything you say about one of your guys. It doesn't bother me, sometimes I appreciate the information you provide, but I understand how the world works.

 

7 minutes ago, Nexus said:

There actually ARE plenty of talented young artists out there. I don't have a monopoly on them!:P But it isn't my job to promote them. My time and energy is devoted to promoting my guys.

Again, I get it - my point is while I know you're promoting your guys, I personally don't believe you're making **** up, I believe you're promoting them with your actual opinion... which hasn't yet changed my own opinion yet, you have a number of guys on your roster that don't do anything for me but I still hope they can pay their bills and earn a living and you're part of how that happens.

Oh, and use more of your time & energy to promote Nick Pitarra - maybe you'll let something slip by accident about what he's working on :whistle:

 

9 minutes ago, Nexus said:

Some have compared Tradd to Todd in terms of a young guy bringing a new energy to comics, whose style is aesthetically pleasing to a young audience. I can see that...put Tradd on Spidey, and you just might get kids jazzed about comics again.

But otherwise, not so much. Stylistically, Tradd is precision to Todd's chaos. Tradd reminds me more of Michael Golden. Hence, the comparison to Michael Golden.

From an energy perspective, wouldn't Liefeld be a better comparison? Out of curiosity, who would you compare Tradd to stylistically?

 

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6 hours ago, delekkerste said:

As for the question of why make comparisons to well-known (re: expensive) works from the past as opposed to "wonderful but worthless books from the past"...well, how many examples of the latter are there where the collector base/marketplace has somehow overlooked supremely talented artists/works for 30-40 years?  Somehow I don't think saying that Tradd Moore's Venom #150 could be "this generation's Strikeforce: Morituri #20" quite does his work justice.  I think many/most would agree that Tradd is an exceptional talent, so, of course any comparison has to be with a high-profile, very well-regarded artist & book (whose value it is only normal the market will have realized).

It's not about overlooking them, just that there are plenty of examples of great artists who have produced wonderful work that has not moved to 5 figure valuations. Terry Moore? Rick Leonardi? Michael Lark? Paul Chadwick? The list could go on for a long ways of talented artists who are respected and appreciated and whose work has not gone up dramatically in value.

6 hours ago, PhilipB2k17 said:

I don't get what the problem is. Felix is an art rep. He believes in his stable of artists and promotes them. Some of that includes hype, which is part of doing his job to promote them. Each person who buys art from his site should do so based upon their own judgment of the art, not what Felix says about it.

I take the promotional stuff with a grain of salt. Not that I think Felix doesn't believe every word of it, of course. But I recognize that he's just doing his job as a salesman, to generate interest in his guys and to help make them money. It's just part of the hobby.

I also find it to be easy to ignore hyperbole.

But that's doesn't mean others don't, especially new people entering the hobby. And that's the concern - the unintentional effects of such language.

Comics were destroyed by speculation in the 1990s and comic art runs that same risk if the hobby is not careful. In fact, it risks an even bigger bubble since the prices are far higher.

My comments have simply been questioning whether Felix's salesmanship and hyping of books and limited windows and drop times may be having a speculative effect.

It's not about what Felix's intent is, as much as how it's received. 

I think it's a valid question to ask, and even moreso when Felix makes comments like "This is a different crowd than who we interact with on the boards. They don't follow the hobby at large. Many don't bother with CAF. Most have no clue about the overall market...nor do they care.".

That is a very strange set of comments to hear about who is buying his art and does not paint a clear picture of what their intent is. If anything, it clouds it.

6 hours ago, comix4fun said:

When he says Venom #150 can have the same impact as Dr. Strange #55, my mind goes to how distinct and special the artwork in that issue is, how much that art influenced other artists working then and in the future and how much that book is pointed to, artistically, as a landmark in the medium. There's nothing there about dollars and cents and portfolio appreciation. 

I don't disagree with this statement, but speculation is not always about money. You can be speculating about the desirability of a certain artist, the longterm importance of a character, the likelihood of winning awards, etc. 

As has many times been discussed on these boards there are certain marquis books and artists that add a gravitas to someone's collection. Plenty of people in this hobby want attention for what they own that others crave.

4 hours ago, vodou said:

Heh. This is pretty funny, I'm no Felix/Nexus (Fexis/Nelux?) apologist

Coulda fooled me;)

4 hours ago, vodou said:

the onus to communicate effectively is on the 'transmitter' but that doesn't absolve the 'receiver' from all responsibility either.

This is the major point I've been trying to make and which makes Felix defensive. The responsibility is on both sides. His words and actions have an impact, even if it's not what he intends.

4 hours ago, vodou said:

Anyway, there is either a communication problem here or...you are calling Felix a liar (that his later stated intention here is seemingly at odds with his 'message', that his 'intention' is a 'whoops ya got me' cover-up.) So which is it?

You are reading too deeply into something that isn't there. 

I never called Felix a liar or even suggested that. In fact, I've gone out of my way to repeatedly suggest the opposite - that he has been very good about avoiding the suggestion of buying to speculate.

What I have stated, repeatedly, is that "it's still possible that your actions paint a different picture you are not seeing or understanding".

These two things can exist at the same time. This is exactly what you yourself wrote "the onus to communicate effectively is on the 'transmitter' but that doesn't absolve the 'receiver' from all responsibility either."

Felix's intent may simply be to hype up artwork and artists he represents, but that doesn't mean people aren't seeing dollar signs.

 

 

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4 hours ago, vodou said:

Correct. The very definition of 'overlooked artist' s that his work is incredible but his market value (really more 'price' than value) doesn't reflect that. So, RabidFerret and *Spoon* Shoveler ( lol ) are you two ready to acknowledge that there is no such thing as overlooked artists or art? I'm waiting...

You love using that bold font don't you? lol

Hope you weren't waiting long.

Please see my previous post.

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3 hours ago, Nexus said:

Right? It's like a board psychology test: What first comes to mind when you see BORN AGAIN and YEAR ONE?

The Shoveler: "Miller's most lucrative high-water marks."

Rabid Ferret: "Financially successful item from 30 years in the past."

Me: Respectively, the greatest DD story ever, and the greatest Batman origin story ever.

(shrug)

Your copy-pasting skillz are extreme!! And you can use the bold font too! Your parents must be so proud :)

But you still seem to be missing the point - you are comparing the artists you're selling to "the greatest DD story ever and the greatest Batman origin story ever".

You can claim all you want that you're talking only artistic talent, but as Michael Douglas mentioned earlier, "how many examples are there where the collector base/marketplace has somehow overlooked supremely talented artists/works".

To his exact point, if a comic book does become "the greatest XXX story ever", the marketplace will respond. By suggesting new works fresh off the shelves are comparable to "the greatest of all time", you are suggesting that they will be rewarded in the long term for being of such high quality.

 

Edited by RabidFerret
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9 hours ago, Nexus said:

Jay, you've been following Felix Comic Art from the beginning (thank you!). If you haven't read all my e-mail newsletters, can I say you've at least read most of them? Overall, do you feel I encourage speculation?

I consider you to be a fairly typical buyer, in terms of profile: Someone who picks up a piece here or there that catches their eye. When they can afford it. I don't see speculation as a driver. I've already laid out why I don't believe speculation is why we've sold a lot of art to a lot of collectors. And here you are...pretty much what I was talking about. So thanks!

Do I feel that you encourage speculation? Not at all. There are verifiable sources from the web to the podcasts that you are quite the contrary. You have a long "voting record" of this. Honestly, I still believe the art sells itself. Furthermore, each of your artists has a four- to five-figure print run that is essentially free advertising for you and your clients' art. You probably don't even need to lift a finger to hype up your roster (but I know you do because that's what you get paid to do).

Does anyone remember the first Steve Oliff Akira color guide drop? Those color guides aren't in my wheelhouse, but IIRC, didn't the art sell out in about 24 hours? Here's copy of the newsletter Felix sent out on February 4, 2016:

 

Quote

 

We are very excited to announce that colorist STEVE OLIFF has chosen Felix Comic Art to sell his color guides from AKIRA!

Steve Oliff is a comic book colorist who has worked in the industry since 1978. His company, Olyoptics, was the first to use computers to do color separation. Steve was personally selected by AKIRA creator Katsuhiro Otomo to color the seminal work. Steve and Otomo-san worked hand-in-hand at Steve's studio in Point Arena, CA to develop the color scheme that would be used throughout the series. Steve's AKIRA color guides are hand-painted on heavy-stock paper using a combination of airbrush, felt pens, gouache, cel animation paint, and more! These are not your typical color guides; each piece presents beautifully as its own work of art and is suitable for framing (although as with all colored art, best to keep out of direct light). Felix Comic Art is excited to present this rare opportunity for fans to own an original piece from this legendary work.

We have over 300 pieces that we are preparing for the site. 

 

 

Anyone can plainly see that there there was no language in the above text that encouraged speculation that may have contributed to a sell out. And then there was the first Bryan Lee O'Malley art drop on August 12, 2014, a year and a half earlier. Notice how subdued Felix is in selling O'Malley:

 

Quote

 

I am now taking commission lists for both Nick Dragotta and Nick Pitarra for NYCC 2014! Please write for more info.

Also, more Bryan Lee O'Malley art will be posted tomorrow (Wednesday, August 13th) at 12PM PST. Included will be a large selection of pages from LOST AT SEA, some covers/illustrations from various projects...and yes, a few SCOTT PILGRIM pieces as well!

As always, thanks for your patronage!

 

 

And yet, it was an instant sell out. That's why I say the art sells itself. Then a month and a half later, there's a second O'Malley art drop. Felix could have really milked it, but this is what he wrote:

Quote

Felix Comic Art is proud to announce the sale of original art from Bryan Lee O'Malley's SECONDS. Bryan likes, whenever possible, for his art to be in the hands of the fans. To that end, he has consented to releasing a limited number of pages for sale this year. Unlike art from the SCOTT PILGRIM series, all pages from SECONDS are drawn on 11"X14" art board. Here is Bryan's explanation of the art process for this book:

I drew the whole book in rough form, using a Cintiq tablet and Photoshop, and edited the story along the way. The final version was later inked by myself and Jason Fischer, colored by Nathan Fairbairn and lettered by Dustin Harbin. For those wondering, it was “penciled” digitally but later PRINTED OUT in blue ink and INKED TRADITIONALLY, with Jason and I both working on the same page.

Please sign up for the mailing list to get the heads-up for when the art becomes available for sale. As with our previous SCOTT PILGRIM sales, we expect activity to be brisk, so keep an eye out for the e-mail notice. Thanks as always for your patronage and hope to see you soon!

I think it took a little while longer to sell out, if it did at all, but that's understandable. I don't think the market was able to absorb it all in such a short time span. I've bolded the "brisk activity" part for emphasis that the FOMO rhetoric is restrained.

And don't even get me started on the first Paul Pope art drop. Pieces for $40???? C'mon! That was ripe for flipping. Felix didn't have to do that. He was leaving money on the table (please keep doing that, Felix). And yet, I've not seen one $40 piece get flipped.

 

 

 

Edited by Jay Olie Espy
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1 hour ago, RabidFerret said:

You love using that bold font don't you? lol

Hope you weren't waiting long.

Please see my previous post.

I use 'em all...such fun. Your previous post was a waste of bytes, picking portions of my argument only, then re-contextualizing to show them supporting yours. That's cheatin'.

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For full disclosure, I own Tradd Moore art.  I purchased it from his initial agent, Paolo Belfiore of Cadence Comic Art.

Felix and I have discussed Tradd's art early on before Felix started representing Tradd.  We never discussed $$$ or future value.  It was always about how refreshing his art looked.  Personally, Tradd's art reminds me of the late, great Al Hirschfeld.  Hirschfeld drew caricatures of performing artists for the Arts and Leisure section of the NY Times.  I would never compare Tradd to McFarlane, Adams or Golden.  As a seasoned collector, if Felix referenced Golden or Dr. Strange # 55 during our discussions, I would have asked for clarifications.

Rabid Ferret is not questioning Felix's intent.  He is just pointing out that to a newbie collector, such a reference might lead to speculation.  For newbie collectors Caveat Emptor.

That's why I personally do not buy for speculation.  If I did, I could easily have bought TDKR and Watchmen art long ago.  

Now when artwork was cheap and affordable, I did buy artwork just to study the technique of the artist.  But even then, I clearly liked the art.  As art has become pricier, I now have to love the art before I buy it.

btw - Tradd's breakout high point to me is the Howard the Duck / Squirrel Girl interconnecting covers that may have also been used for a poster.  Unfortunately for me, it was sold to another collector.  I'm happy with my Modok cover though.  Now if Alan Moore had written the issue ............  Lol.

Cheers!

N.

 

 

 

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On 1/12/2018 at 2:19 AM, RabidFerret said:

You sell artwork as a business. Your goal is to sell artwork for your clients. Stop defensively splitting hairs on insignificant things.

As for DS55, I don't follow Golden, but given the lone example on Heritage selling for $10k in 2008, I'd imagine it would be worth quite a bit more today.

So I'm still curious what 30 year old art you've been comparing your artists to on artistic merits only?

Just getting caught up here, Rabid Ferret.  I'm sorry for missing out on this discussion earlier.  In lieu of writing several responses, here's one macro-post.

So far what I see since last night are several continuations of the mis-directions, projections, 'shoot the messenger' type responses, and attempts to turn this into a distributed denial-of-service attack where they demand a reply to each little diversionary claim.

As you've precisely noted above, you know and I know that this is not about a nominally-valued individual comic, independent of its original art pages that already reached $10K ten years ago.  It's not about being excited "as a fan" for a particular artist or group of artists, or using hyperbole among informed, experienced & sophisticated original art fans. And this discussion is not about Sean Murphy (a topic that was already addressed extensively on a separate thread).  It's not about me being somehow obsessed with the potential financial rewards of the hobby, a topic I avoid and seldom-if-ever comment on.  It's not about Felix attempting to claim me as his own private personal troll because it's all about him and if you don't believe me, just ask him.  And it's not even about Felix taking one of my comments and selectively misquoting it, and then tortuously layering on his own convoluted subtext to make it mean whatever Felix wants it to mean. 

Those are just some of the deflections and defensive reactions that have been employed repeatedly here.  Maybe there's more that I missed.  They appear to desperately want to make it about those things.  But it's not.

This is about Felix leaping across a chasm in his sales messages to link his products directly to one of the most successful and influential comic creators of the past 35+ years, the closest thing the industry has to a household name after Stan Lee, and promoting that connection to the broader, and impressionable, public as a sales practice.  A public that includes not just savvy, experienced and well-informed veterans of the hobby.  It also includes people who are new, inexperienced collectors as he's keenly aware of and mentioned before.

Maybe somewhere there's comparative sales data, movie deals, a Frank Miller quote, etc. to justify any of the Miller speculations.  But that certainly wasn't presented to the customers.  It's a giant leap to anoint someone, anyone as the next Miller in a sales-related (not a fan-based) message.

As difficult as it may be for some to understand, there are many people who are vulnerable and susceptible to this exact type of unsubstantiated association and the allure of the tacit potential for big payoffs.  You may deny their existence and you may deny their value and utility as a person, you may even laugh at 'em and call them a bunch of suckers.  But they are there even though you may not see them or care about them.  Their vulnerability to a highly-refined and selective marketing ploy isn't necessarily a character failure solely on their part.  And when a sophisticated marketing pitch is based on connecting products to some of the most highly-valued comic art (Valued at Thousands of Dollars! Tens of Thousands!  Six Figures!!  Wish I bought it 10-20-30 years ago!) from one of the most well-known and impactful comic creators of a generation (and one of the very few to achieve any sort of enduring multi-media successes), then those vulnerable people are not being treated responsibly and respectfully as customers or as human beings.  It gives all the appearance that they are being taken advantage of by an insider who's acting from a position of power who appears to be willing to deliberately drive them towards speculative, unrealistic, and potentially financially harmful decisions.

 

On 1/11/2018 at 11:54 PM, The Shoveler said:

And when you promote somebody as the next Frank Miller and hype their latest project as being analogous to Miller's most lucrative high-water marks, then you build the cliff and announce how fabulous it would be to take a leap.

 

When that practice is dismissed with:

On 1/11/2018 at 11:14 PM, Nexus said:

Like I just said earlier, people hear what they want to hear. They'll believe what they want to believe.

...and followed by diversions, evasiveness, misquoting, etc while avoid addressing the specific concerns regarding the sales tactic, then that behavior comes across across as disingenuous at best.

The sales tactic was concerning, his reaction was disappointing in the extreme and seems to confirm the worst possible impressions that were originated by the sales tactic.

I do not know Felix.  I've never met him, I've never talked with him, and I've never sought to purchase from him.  Seeing his conduct here tells me all I need or want to know about him.

Edited by The Shoveler
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18 hours ago, SquareChaos said:

Oh, and use more of your time & energy to promote Nick Pitarra - maybe you'll let something slip by accident about what he's working on :whistle:

Official announcement coming soon!

18 hours ago, SquareChaos said:

From an energy perspective, wouldn't Liefeld be a better comparison? Out of curiosity, who would you compare Tradd to stylistically?

The comparison to Golden isn’t just necessarily for style, but again, for bringing a unique look to mainstream comics. Tradd favorite comic artists include Ryan Ottley, but his art is more influenced by manga/anime, video games, and Hong Kong action movies. 

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