emme_jay Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 I have a small original ink sketch by a comic artist that was part of my brother's comic collection. I really wish I knew how he got it. Probably an interesting story. I'd like to keep it for sentimental reasons but it should be framed and on display by someone who'd appreciate it daily. I have it locked up for safe keeping. No one is enjoying or has enjoyed it for at least 30 years. How do I go about getting it appraised without sending it out? No way am I putting it in the mail for someone to inspect. I absolutely do not want an auction house/site to assign it a value. I feel appraising and sales shouldn't be done at the same place. It's such a conflict of interest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post stinkininkin Posted January 25, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted January 25, 2019 14 minutes ago, emme_jay said: I have a small original ink sketch by a comic artist that was part of my brother's comic collection. I really wish I knew how he got it. Probably an interesting story. I'd like to keep it for sentimental reasons but it should be framed and on display by someone who'd appreciate it daily. I have it locked up for safe keeping. No one is enjoying or has enjoyed it for at least 30 years. How do I go about getting it appraised without sending it out? No way am I putting it in the mail for someone to inspect. I absolutely do not want an auction house/site to assign it a value. I feel appraising and sales shouldn't be done at the same place. It's such a conflict of interest. There are many guys on this message board who could easily give you an estimate, and a fairly accurate one. Take a pic and post it here and take the average estimates you get back as a pretty solid barometer of what you have. JadeGiant, Twanj, thehumantorch and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JadeGiant Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 8 hours ago, stinkininkin said: There are many guys on this message board who could easily give you an estimate, and a fairly accurate one. Take a pic and post it here and take the average estimates you get back as a pretty solid barometer of what you have. Indeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emme_jay Posted January 25, 2019 Author Share Posted January 25, 2019 10 hours ago, stinkininkin said: There are many guys on this message board who could easily give you an estimate, and a fairly accurate one. Take a pic and post it here and take the average estimates you get back as a pretty solid barometer of what you have. ADAMANTIUM, Twanj, PhilipB2k17 and 1 other 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilipB2k17 Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 5 minutes ago, emme_jay said: Gulp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilipB2k17 Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 (edited) A similar rough Conan sketch by Frazetta, with Conan holding a sword, got $1700 at Hake’s in 2012. A much more detailed full body Conan sketch in a similar pose (with C resting on a sword) went for $8900 in 2008 at heritage. A Conan bust sketch went for $1500 in 2016 at Heritage. I think this would go for $3-5K, but I can see a bidding war driving it up much higher just because it’s a Frazetta Conan drawing and these don’t come up very often. Assuming it’s authentic, and it appears it is. Edited January 25, 2019 by PhilipB2k17 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
faust1104 Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 How does one know that this is genuine/authentic? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamhlawson Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 That is stunning, moody, broody Conan by Frazetta -- would bump the sketch value significantly imho. As to it's authenticity, ask here!!! Folks are generally very honest and forthright, although opinions vary always. It looks good to me as far as legitimacy (fluid lines, not forced, his stance, just looks right, etc.), his 'signature' is the easiest thing to authenticate most likely due to repetitive examples. As to it's value, again, ask here!! The Heritage numbers provided above are a good starting point, but every piece is unique and has it's own up and downside(s) per collector. That being said, I'd overpay for this one in particular if in my spending range and from a respected dealer/auction house. Thanks for sharing here and best of luck. Twanj and emme_jay 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ESeffinga Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 Well this thread got interesting. I was expecting some 90s spandex hero marker doodle to be the topic. A very pleasant surprise. I’d figure a Fritz doodle like this is 1.5-2.5k depending totally on day and place. Broody Conan is a plus, but there isn’t any of that Fraz motion or curvy ladies that IMO bring the primo sketch dollars. Man really was great at capturing so mutch with so few lines. Congrats on a great piece. And if you decide it’s not of interest to you as work or keepsake of your brother, it’ll make for a nice little chunk of change. Twanj and emme_jay 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andahaion Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 She's a beaut, Clark! Blastaar 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pemart1966 Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 2 hours ago, faust1104 said: How does one know that this is genuine/authentic? A very good question. You'll need some Frazetta experts to chime in. Keep in mind that part of any valuation should include an inspection of the piece in person. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emme_jay Posted January 25, 2019 Author Share Posted January 25, 2019 2 hours ago, faust1104 said: How does one know that this is genuine/authentic? I had the signature verified by CBCS. Their thought process was if the signature was authentic, the art would be as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vodou Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 The likelihood of this being fake is pretty high. Which is not to say it isn't authentic, it's just that there are a lot of fake Frazetta sketches out there some dating as early as the seventies. It was an industry even back when Fraz was at full strength and making plenty of them himself. Provenance, which it appears you do not have, would be very valuable. The CBCS aspect is essentially worthless (sorry). Maybe somebody that's more of an expert on Frank Frazetta's actual line can chime in more specifically, but without rock solid provenance and based on the above that I already know...I wouldn't pay anything for this. I hope it's real and that you can get that confirmed and get fair market for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emme_jay Posted January 25, 2019 Author Share Posted January 25, 2019 1 hour ago, ESeffinga said: Well this thread got interesting. I was expecting some 90s spandex hero marker doodle to be the topic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
revat Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 11 minutes ago, vodou said: The likelihood of this being fake is pretty high. Which is not to say it isn't authentic, it's just that there are a lot of fake Frazetta sketches out there some dating as early as the seventies. It was an industry even back when Fraz was at full strength and making plenty of them himself. Provenance, which it appears you do not have, would be very valuable. The CBCS aspect is essentially worthless (sorry). Maybe somebody that's more of an expert on Frank Frazetta's actual line can chime in more specifically, but without rock solid provenance and based on the above that I already know...I wouldn't pay anything for this. I hope it's real and that you can get that confirmed and get fair market for it. I don't think the CBCS aspect is 'worthless', but not a huge game changer. but even 10% more for something potentially worth thousands of dollars is something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vodou Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 Just now, revat said: I don't think the CBCS aspect is 'worthless', but not a huge game changer. but even 10% more for something potentially worth thousands of dollars is something. I'll go on the record that I'm not convinced by that signature either. Again: worthless, unless CBCS is willing to stand behind that 'guarantee' in the face of a lawsuit (and I very much doubt that!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emme_jay Posted January 25, 2019 Author Share Posted January 25, 2019 1 hour ago, ESeffinga said: Broody Conan is a plus, but there isn’t any of that Fraz motion or curvy ladies that IMO bring the primo sketch dollars. I have come across items he had hidden in his book collection. I've been through all of them more than once, Hoping to make another discovery. Curvy lady sketch would be clutch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emme_jay Posted January 25, 2019 Author Share Posted January 25, 2019 43 minutes ago, vodou said: Provenance, which it appears you do not have, would be very valuable. The CBCS aspect is essentially worthless (sorry). A good chunk of my brother's comic books are Frazetta related. The provenance is he had more than a few collections of comics, books, artwork, records, concert posters, movie posters, etc. I had books signed by Ray Bradbury, Walt Disney, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Ernest Hemingway, he even had a letter from friggin' Charles Dickens in his collection. All signatures were authenticated before the books were auctioned off. If you need the name and phone number of the auction house, I'll be more than happy to provide it. Say what you want about CBCS but Beckett's is a very trustworthy source for signature authentication and I have no reason to believe they got this one wrong. But hey, you do you, Debbie Downer. John E., Catwoman_Fan and thethedew 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
comicwiz Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 (edited) 20 minutes ago, emme_jay said: Say what you want about CBCS but Beckett's is a very trustworthy source for signature authentication and I have no reason to believe they got this one wrong. I feel the help it offers is dependent on venue. Whether Heritage or Hakes, it should do fine. If OA market health was entirely contingent on provenance, it would be a surviving artist only market. Edited January 25, 2019 by comicwiz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JadeGiant Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 14 minutes ago, comicwiz said: I feel the help it offers is dependent on venue. Whether Heritage or Hakes, it should do fine. If OA market health was entirely contingent on provenance, it would be a surviving artist only market. I agree. Based on the backstory, it sounds like you most likely have a legitimate Fraz sketch. Do your diligence and list at a big auction house and I would think you will do well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
