• When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

Who/what got you started on your OA journey?
2 2

46 posts in this topic

I've been art-aware for what seems like as long as I could hold a pencil. My own interest in comic originals didn't come until 1991 or 92, when I stumbled across a box of original pages that a dealer brought to one of those local small hotel ballroom comic book "shows" here in DC. I'd gone in looking for some possible comics, and came away with a page to Shade the Changing Man.

I had a very brief chat with the dealer, who indicated that he bought most of his art up in NYC, and then took it around to these local weekend shows on the east cost. I want to say this turned out to be Scott Dunbier.  I did buy a number of pieces from him over the next couple of years.  Some of it is art I still have and treasure. Most of it has been sold off over the years, as my collecting took proper focus. But there was a lot of painted work in there. And the experiences of having it turned my head in a huge way. My interest in actual comic collecting was all but over by the time I had those first couple pieces framed. From then on, I was all about making calls via the classified ads in CBG, and to the advertising dealers and their catalogs. Word of mouth, etc. By the time the internet took hold, I was a pretty diehard vet, and it because such a great tool for digging up more/better pieces.

Still get nostalgic for the old timey ways, but then I realize how much "better" it is now as well.

 

Edited by ESeffinga
Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, zhamlau said:

One of the few times you will hear the Donnellys brought up in a positive light on these boards lol.

My father bought me my first piece of art that got me collecting. At the first Wonder Con the next year is when I bought my first piece of art from the Donnelleys.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

In 2012, I was looking for some art to hang up in my daughters' room who were 5 and 3 at the time and both were totally into the newly-launched My Little Pony TV show. IDW was just launching the comic book tie-in, so I thought "wouldn't that be a neat thing to hang up in their room?". Next thing I know, I find a whole world of OA has been right there waiting for me to stop buying slabbed books (all sold now!) and start spending all my disposable money on OA. Still have that first MLP cover that I bought for the girls...but boy, what a crazy trip its been! 

Bob

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I first got started collecting OA in 1997. I had a comic book store in Houston, TX and one of my customers was a big art collector. his name was Henry Huie and he had so much art that there were atleast 2 rooms in his house that were nothing but shelving and flat files to store the art he couldn't hang on his walls. He mostly collected the Studio artists (BWS, Kaluta, Jeff Jones and Bernie Wrightson). He also had a lot of comic and Mad magazine art as well. We became friends as I would deliver his comics to him at his diner and he would look through the previews and order art books and sometimes toys for his nephews.

He only took one dat off a month and a few Holidays as well. One day off coincided with a comic show coming to town with Paul Ryan as one of the guests. I was a fan os his run on the Flash at the time, so I decided to get him to signed some of the books he drew. He also had some OA page from the Flash there at the show with him. Henry suggested I buy one and made the following argument for the purchase. I could own 1 copy of thousands of the Flash comic book, but I would be the only one to own the OA for the page I was thinking of buying. That made sense and I made my first OA purchase, Flash #132 page 11, wit Wally in his new Speed Force costume for $75.

I no longer have the page. I sold it to another collector about 3 years ago. Henry died unexpectedly in 2014 as well. The hobby he got me into has been a fun and wonderful journey these past 22 years. I may no longer have the first piece of OA that I ever bought, but I am an avid collector to this day. 

Thanks, Henry.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

WHAT

It was the movie Unbreakable where the character of Sam Jackson owned a comic art gallery - that made me realise that somebody actually draws the comic pages and the original art must exist. 

 

WHO

For me, it started with a girl.

I was seeing this girl who was studying art history.  She knew everything about, Renaissance art, impressionist art, Cubism, Surrealist art and all that fancy stuff. I figured it I could impress her by introducing her to the low brow, backstreet style of art of comic art, the one type of art she knew nothing about. It would be like taking a gourmet chef to a food truck that has the best food in town. 

Coincidentally, I happened to go to a local comic mart around that time where a guy was selling some original art. I bought one page. I figured I only needed one. That was some years back. 

I have a few more than one now.

Edited by Skizz
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, cmaeditor said:

I first got started collecting OA in 1997. I had a comic book store in Houston, TX and one of my customers was a big art collector. his name was Henry Huie and he had so much art that there were atleast 2 rooms in his house that were nothing but shelving and flat files to store the art he couldn't hang on his walls. He mostly collected the Studio artists (BWS, Kaluta, Jeff Jones and Bernie Wrightson). He also had a lot of comic and Mad magazine art as well. We became friends as I would deliver his comics to him at his diner and he would look through the previews and order art books and sometimes toys for his nephews.

He only took one dat off a month and a few Holidays as well. One day off coincided with a comic show coming to town with Paul Ryan as one of the guests. I was a fan os his run on the Flash at the time, so I decided to get him to signed some of the books he drew. He also had some OA page from the Flash there at the show with him. Henry suggested I buy one and made the following argument for the purchase. I could own 1 copy of thousands of the Flash comic book, but I would be the only one to own the OA for the page I was thinking of buying. That made sense and I made my first OA purchase, Flash #132 page 11, wit Wally in his new Speed Force costume for $75.

I no longer have the page. I sold it to another collector about 3 years ago. Henry died unexpectedly in 2014 as well. The hobby he got me into has been a fun and wonderful journey these past 22 years. I may no longer have the first piece of OA that I ever bought, but I am an avid collector to this day. 

Thanks, Henry.

Great story. For many reasons, one of the legendary collectors in the history of this hobby. Everyone I've talked to who knew him have nothing but nice things to say. Wish I'd had the opportunity to meet him!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

12 minutes ago, Skizz said:

I figured it I could impress her by introducing her to the low brow, backstreet style of art of comic art, the one type of art she knew nothing about. It would be like taking a gourmet chef to a food truck that has the best food in town. 

So... was she impressed ??

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Late 1980s or early 1990s was when I got the bug. I think it was Paul Ryan sketching at a show. I saw a huge line and looked to see what it was about. When I saw that it was Paul Ryan doing free head sketches I was amazed; I didn't know artists went to cons! I had been lugging huge amounts of comics to shows to get signed but that ended soon after this discovery. I also bought a Sandman page from the CBG classifieds when I was in college or graduate school...would have been around 1991. $125 and I didn't know where I would get the money when I got the notice that I was winning bidder but somehow I did. Sold it about 20 years later for $1500 or so. That was my biggest win in all these years as I have never been the smart buyer in terms of the market and was a Copper / Modern reader so no interest in the artists that now bring big bucks until it was too late. One Kirby for me, and a pedestrian one at that. no covers from Bronze era, etc. but it has been the hobby love of my life and I love it still.

I was a commission guy for way too long. I should have seen the light earlier there but it is water under the bridge now. I remember Scott Eder asking me at a show "what do you do for a living?" when I was spending so much with him. he also wanted to know why a Doctor Strange fan had no Ditko but I told him Ditko was not my guy. Oh I should have listened! back then I could have gotten one if I planned for it.

Edited by Bird
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hello! First time posting here. I have collected art for a long time now. Originally, I collected animation artwork, because it was similar to owning a prop from the show. I've always loved art and had comic artists draw originals at cons, but I never really had the budget for the pages that I wanted until later. I got my first pages in around 2012, some pieces of work from the Marvel Movies preludes, since again, it was as close to having a 'piece' of the movie as I was going to get. Then it blossomed as I learned more about contacting the artists directly to get pages, and pretty soon I was getting pages for comics that had only just hit the presses. 

I'm very intrigued by restoring comic art and that might be something I try in the near future, with overlays to replace missing graphics, repair of tears and dents, things like that.

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Nexus said:

Great story. For many reasons, one of the legendary collectors in the history of this hobby. Everyone I've talked to who knew him have nothing but nice things to say. Wish I'd had the opportunity to meet him!

Yeah. He was one of the nicest people I have met in all my years in the comic and art collecting hobby. He would give you his honest opinion about anything. His only regret in collecting was not getting a Frazetta painting. The first time he invited me to see his art at his house, I was amazed at what I saw. Almost every wall in hiouse was covered with framed art.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have collected comics ever since I was about 8 years old in my first trip to the USA back in 1984 haven't stopped since. I don't know how I didn't notice OA before 2009 since I had attended one convention in NY in the '90's and one in 2007. Looking through the internet I think I came by Albert Moy's website and then it clicked for me. I went ahead and purchased a page from Promethea by JH Williams which was what I was reading back then. Haven't stopped since and have been broke ever since too. lol, I wouldn't give it up ever!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Mike Grell. Fell in love with his pencils and talked with him for a long while at a show. Was surprised at how approachable and friendly the majority of creators were. Before then I just collected key issue comics and like others have said when I realized I could own a piece of art/history in my hands for roughly the same price of a key issue it made since to make the jump. Sold all my comics. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I first come across OA on Ebay when a collector was selling their collection. I didn't buy anything but was now interested in it. The first piece I got was from a comiclink focus auction. It was a page from the 90's DC Demon series that I got for the large sum of $11 dollars. The shipping on it cost me $30. it was something I didn't even plan on buying. I just decided to look at the comic art tab which I had ignored up to then. As I was scrolling through I saw the piece with it ending in around 30 minutes and decided to put a thrill bid on it and that was that. That $11 dollar purchase has ended up costing me a lot more than I thought it would.

https://www.comicartfans.com/gallerypiece.asp?piece=1291383

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
2 2