What happens when you reach several collectiong goals at the same time??? What next? 2 2

[comicfanboy007]

I realize this may be a strange topic. I am just throwing this out there and would love to hear from other collectors to hear if this ever happened to them and if it did, what did they do?

I have been collecting art for over twenty years, with the past two being a pretty active and involved collector. This month I had the incredible good fortune to pick up several pieces that  completed several major goals for my art collection. I have always wanted a Dark Knight Returns piece and at SDCC I had picked up a prelim to the cover for the DKR 10th Anniversary HC. I was thrilled!!! A gorgeous prelim that is tighter than you would expect and really shows Miller's process. Also at that same con I received a stunning Dave Gibbons commission of the golden age Nite Owl that wonderfully represents my love of Watchmen.

These were two major goals that I never thought I would achieve, actually achieved.  I am THRILLED with these pieces they are wonderful representations of some of my favorite artists and comics. Particularly with the budget I can afford for the hobby.  But now I am having a collector's existential moment of "What's next?" "Where do I want my collection to go?"

I acknowledge this is a good problem to have and that every collector is different. I know there will always be more art because I am always looking at new art.  As I take a breather I  wonder if something similar has ever happened to you? Have you ever reached the top of your mountain and go what's next?  If it did, what did you do to evaluate or reevaluate your collection? How did you figure out what you wanted your collection to be? Did it change your collecting habits if so, how?

Thanks for listening and I look forward to hearing your responses.

 

[Carlo M]

I am in a  similar state of mind at the moment.  This means that I look less at CAF offers to make, and just enjoy auction materials coming through, waiting for the piece that "speaks to me", not feeling that I have necessarily to buy something.

[stinkininkin]

2 minutes ago, Carlo M said:

I am in a  similar state of mind at the moment.  This means that I look less at CAF offers to make, and just enjoy auction materials coming through, waiting for the piece that "speaks to me", not feeling that I have necessarily to buy something.

+1

[PhilipB2k17]

1 hour ago, comicfanboy007 said:

I realize this may be a strange topic. I am just throwing this out there and would love to hear from other collectors to hear if this ever happened to them and if it did, what did they do?

I have been collecting art for over twenty years, with the past two being a pretty active and involved collector. This month I had the incredible good fortune to pick up several pieces that  completed several major goals for my art collection. I have always wanted a Dark Knight Returns piece and at SDCC I had picked up a prelim to the cover for the DKR 10th Anniversary HC. I was thrilled!!! A gorgeous prelim that is tighter than you would expect and really shows Miller's process. Also at that same con I received a stunning Dave Gibbons commission of the golden age Nite Owl that wonderfully represents my love of Watchmen.

These were two major goals that I never thought I would achieve, actually achieved.  I am THRILLED with these pieces they are wonderful representations of some of my favorite artists and comics. Particularly with the budget I can afford for the hobby.  But now I am having a collector's existential moment of "What's next?" "Where do I want my collection to go?"

I acknowledge this is a good problem to have and that every collector is different. I know there will always be more art because I am always looking at new art.  As I take a breather I  wonder if something similar has ever happened to you? Have you ever reached the top of your mountain and go what's next?  If it did, what did you do to evaluate or reevaluate your collection? How did you figure out what you wanted your collection to be? Did it change your collecting habits if so, how?

Thanks for listening and I look forward to hearing your responses.

 

Wait 4-5 months until the urge to go get another page overwhelms you.

Problem solved.

[PhilipB2k17]

10 minutes ago, Carlo M said:

I am in a  similar state of mind at the moment.  This means that I look less at CAF offers to make, and just enjoy auction materials coming through, waiting for the piece that "speaks to me", not feeling that I have necessarily to buy something.

I've tried to train myself to be this way all the time. To varying degrees of success! 

[JadeGiant]

If you don't have an itch, don't start scratching. 

[eewwnuk]

1 hour ago, stinkininkin said:

+1

+2.   other option is to retire from the hobby and call it a day. 

[GeneticNinja]

Do you have the artwork displayed how you want it? Those two seem to go together for some. And usually when you get the display you'll find something else you'll want to fill a space.

[ESeffinga]

The goalposts... they do often move on us when we least expect it.

[Bird]

always be fluid, never be rigid in your collecting goals. I usually don't get too directive but am confident in this. Do what feels good within the parameters you have set for collecting. Think long and hard about what you want unless you don't want to think about it because it is a hobby dammit. But think and then act accordingly so that the result feels good. If you find yourself worrying if something fits or belongs, stop and come back to it later and by the time you come back to it you will know the answer. I have found myself in a few distinct periods over the years. Some things are linear progressions and some things then have steps that move beyond the previous line of thought. I used to think collecting was linear but it is not, it is a series of steps. I enjoy taking new steps; my latest was focusing on The Fifty and culling the herd while buying select pieces (mostly Mignolas while I wait for big fish)!

thinking is important because money is involved. But feeling good about your stuff is the key.

[Brian Peck]

I have found in the last few years I have fill many of my nostalgic areas when it comes to comic art. I have also been filling in the holes in my collection in regards to artists I like but don't have an example of something if theirs I really like. For me I read a lot of comics growing up while my collecting comic art has diminished somewhat there is always areas I still want examples from. You may find your big driving need for BIG nostalgic art has been fulfilled but there is always something else out there that you will want to have in your collection. Just wait the addition will come back strong.

[timguerrero]

I concur with most answers here. Something will eventually come up just watch auctions and CAF and OA groups. Something new you want always comes up!

[TMNT]

Landing your grail is an incredible moment and one that I don't think many get to experience. So congrats! In my case, there were still other pieces I want(ed) to fill the collection and others I wanted to upgrade. Seeing the grail in hand also put the rest of the collection into perspective and allowed me to sell pieces I hadn't really considered selling. Having the grail also means you can be a lot more critical with future purchases...why chase an example when you have THE example, in your eyes? What I collect is pretty niche in an already niche hobby, so I've always been used to feast to famine as far as availability goes. Just develop patience and enjoy what you got.

[hmendryk]

I have been collecting since the late 90's and have largely focused on Simon and Kirby (including artists who worked for them). Not so long ago I managed to obtain some very desirable pieces, include my grail. Since then I cooled to purchasing more Simon and Kirby pieces, feeling rather satiated in that department. Now I have been pursuing more modern work. I have been rather pleased with what I have managed to obtain in that area and again feel somewhat fulfilled in that area as well. But we shall see how long that lasts.

[Bird]

Sometimes I think we have forgotten who we are. (Not directed at the OP or anyone in particular, just feeling a rant.) You do not get into OA the same way that you get into comics or most other hobbies. Maybe my experience is rare, but I was the odd one who went from comics to OA in my group. At college and after no one was interested in OA despite there being a bunch of guys who were into comics. Comic guys are individualists to some extent and OA guys are distilled even further. We got into OA because we liked it, and eff anyone who didn't understand. It wasn't like Deadheads or guys who like Rush or Indigo Girls girls or Pat Benatar chicks, you couldn't just look around and find others like you but you did kept going anyway. But once you DO find the other people in the hobby suddenly the need to justify arises. Forget that. Continue being true to yourself and following what YOU think is cool. There is no need to question yourself, trust me on that. I was the guy collecting 150 Starman pages at one time. I would have done far better financially to have bought other stuff but I was in love with that book and Tony Harris' art on it so I would never have had the enjoyment of those experiences if I had not gone down that road. Now I have 40-50 Harris pieces, love them to death and no plans to part with the vast majority of them, and have moved onto other things. Including comic books! I am thinking of buying more GA comics! I have a pretty penny (in my world at least) in comics now. I find I enjoy them and am parsing my OA purchases accordingly. If I had bought things on my current OA want list 20 years ago I never would have appreciated them as I will should I manage to land them all. But I loved that stuff that I was buying at the time and am glad I went that route. I remember Scott Eder asking me why I didn't have a Ditko or wasn't targeting one and I told him that I was much more a PMS or Brunner fan and bought accordingly!

[The Voord]

The OP has twenty years collecting OA behind him so that's a good sign of time and experience in the hobby to justify his claims.

Second thing in his favour is that he's talking about 'goals', as opposed to the oft-used term, 'grails' (which can often seem meaningless . . . best taken with a pinch-of-salt).  How often do newbie collectors make posts about finding their 'grails' that for some of us seem far-from-spectacular (and in many cases are casually put back up for sale not long afterwards)?

I like 'goals' . . . that's a realistic target to aim for.  

I also lean towards 'grail-like', which I myself have applied to only a very small handful of acquisitions I've made over the years (been collecting OA since 1982, so I like to think I've got time in the hobby to validate my claims).

I pretty much achieved most of my (realistic) goals in comic-book OA collecting some years ago.  As values on the stuff I'd collected over the years soared in price (thanks to the advent of the internet, which opened up the market to a wider readily-accessible audience), I discovered a different goal in my life . . . to pave the way for a better lifestyle for myself and my family by way of selling-off the high-end artworks that (as I got older) realised was not something I considered worth hanging onto until the bitter end (I derived a great deal of pleasure out of the art while I had it).  Don't think I'm being morbid here, just realistic.  Unless you're financially secure and can afford to donate your collection to a willing and appreciative public institution (and here I'm not talking about a collection of sketch-covers, commissions of Mary Jane Watson in revealing poses  and the like).  Sometime in the future the realization that nothing is forever will dawn on you.

Which kind of answers the OP's question, "What happens next?" (in the sense, "What happened next for me?").  You hang onto your collection of achieved 'goals' as long as you can before reality kicks in and you come to the conclusion that if there's still an audience for the stuff you've collected over the years . . . it's time to let someone else be a temporary custodian of it.

Oh, how I love making happy posts!  

Edited August 11, 2018 by The Voord

[Khazano]

On 8/9/2018 at 10:51 AM, Carlo M said:

I am in a  similar state of mind at the moment.  This means that I look less at CAF offers to make, and just enjoy auction materials coming through, waiting for the piece that "speaks to me", not feeling that I have necessarily to buy something.

+3  

[Rick2you2]

On 8/9/2018 at 12:39 PM, comicfanboy007 said:

I realize this may be a strange topic. I am just throwing this out there and would love to hear from other collectors to hear if this ever happened to them and if it did, what did they do?

I have been collecting art for over twenty years, with the past two being a pretty active and involved collector. This month I had the incredible good fortune to pick up several pieces that  completed several major goals for my art collection. I have always wanted a Dark Knight Returns piece and at SDCC I had picked up a prelim to the cover for the DKR 10th Anniversary HC. I was thrilled!!! A gorgeous prelim that is tighter than you would expect and really shows Miller's process. Also at that same con I received a stunning Dave Gibbons commission of the golden age Nite Owl that wonderfully represents my love of Watchmen.

These were two major goals that I never thought I would achieve, actually achieved.  I am THRILLED with these pieces they are wonderful representations of some of my favorite artists and comics. Particularly with the budget I can afford for the hobby.  But now I am having a collector's existential moment of "What's next?" "Where do I want my collection to go?"

I acknowledge this is a good problem to have and that every collector is different. I know there will always be more art because I am always looking at new art.  As I take a breather I  wonder if something similar has ever happened to you? Have you ever reached the top of your mountain and go what's next?  If it did, what did you do to evaluate or reevaluate your collection? How did you figure out what you wanted your collection to be? Did it change your collecting habits if so, how?

Thanks for listening and I look forward to hearing your responses.

 

I put the hobby aside for a while and did some other things (for a few decades, actually). You were the one who set your goals; goals can be moved. Perhaps, you are really telling yourself: enough for now.

Cut yourself off from active involvement for several months and then figure out if you miss it. If so, make new goals. If not, just hang around here if you want. Always good to have someone with an enthusiastic attitude.

[artdealer]

On 8/10/2018 at 10:49 AM, hmendryk said:

I have been collecting since the late 90's and have largely focused on Simon and Kirby (including artists who worked for them). Not so long ago I managed to obtain some very desirable pieces, include my grail. Since then I cooled to purchasing more Simon and Kirby pieces, feeling rather satiated in that department. Now I have been pursuing more modern work. I have been rather pleased with what I have managed to obtain in that area and again feel somewhat fulfilled in that area as well. But we shall see how long that lasts.

Good, now maybe I can manage to buy your rejects. 

[hmendryk]

14 hours ago, artdealer said:

Good, now maybe I can manage to buy your rejects. 

I wouldn't call them rejects. Some of the Simon and Kirby art I have passed on recently I would have happily picked up earlier in my collecting. There are still some great S&K art to be had although prices have been rising.