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What art/artists have dropped in popularity?
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77 posts in this topic

Are there any artists who used to be popular but for one reason or another have fallen out of favor as far as their work's collectibility?

Edited by NewCollector101
clarity
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8 minutes ago, NewCollector101 said:

Someone was telling me about old newspaper strips they used to collect that are now not very valuable or in-demand, and I was wondering if there are other artists or types of work or etc. that used to be more collected but are now less expensive or less desired? I'm mainly asking because I've been looking at the latest Heritage auction and there's a lot of old work (30s, 40s, 50s) that I'm not familiar with that I think is amazing, but also is well beyond my budget. But I'm also interested because I hear a lot about which artists and works have skyrocketed in value recently, and wondering about the other side of that coin.

 Art from this period or any period, you want to avoid over paying for art. It just takes patience and determining a fair value.

That's a tricky one. There are a plethora of 30's-50's art out there. I think it just takes some research. You mentioned you saw a few pieces you admired? Do some online research and see if you see comparable prices or even better flexibility in pricing. You will find ebay auctions and probably want to find one without a fixed price. You might be able to bid and win a nice piece.Set a maximum bid price in your head and adhere to that so you are happy. 

PM if you need help on a piece you like my friend.

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Check the internet for availability if there is a certain strip that has caught your eye.

Google dealer sites, auction houses, CAF, CAT, are all good info.

Check past sales results and current asking prices.

Send messages to people here with questions.

Sometimes there are many similar ones to choose from and that can indicate 

a common strip that you could wait on or bid low.

If there is scarcity, plus desirability, you can decide how bad you want it.

Don't rule out a future flood of the market in your category of interest or research.

Even many desirable artists have plenty of strips out there. 

Try to imagine what your future collection will look like.

Go for it when one really strikes you as a favorite for all the right reasons.

I really like strips, the format, the history, broad appeal with great characters and content.

Click to embiggen this 1949 Superman strip by Wayne Boring.

I am a sucker for checkered, plaid, block printed, and cross hatched clothing.

David

1949 Superman Daily Wayne Boring Stan Kaye  Comic Art

Edited by aokartman
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57 minutes ago, NewCollector101 said:

Someone was telling me about old newspaper strips they used to collect that are now not very valuable or in-demand, and I was wondering if there are other artists or types of work or etc. that used to be more collected but are now less expensive or less desired? I'm mainly asking because I've been looking at the latest Heritage auction and there's a lot of old work (30s, 40s, 50s) that I'm not familiar with that I think is amazing, but also is well beyond my budget. But I'm also interested because I hear a lot about which artists and works have skyrocketed in value recently, and wondering about the other side of that coin.

I guess I'm trying to decipher your underlying question. Is there some Golden Age art you would like to buy but are concerned that its value will decline over time?

That might not be your question but I'm going to answer it anyway. There's an adage in the hobby that goes, "Buy what you love..." It's a tired but true saying that does come with caveats. If you truly are a new collector, I will tell you that what you buy today, you may not love tomorrow (i.e. three years from today) and you may ask yourself why you bought  it in the first place. You may want to sell it to buy something you really like. We all hope that sale will make a little (or lot!) of profit, then we hope to break even when we figure out that it's harder to move. If you are a new collector, you might want to consider swimming in the shallow end of the pool (relative to your budget) on any period of art as you begin to figure out what you *really* like and love and as you begin to follow markets and their trends.

 

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1 hour ago, Blastaar said:

As far as artist goes are you thinking modern or silver/gold? Modern what comes to mind is someone like Van Sciver who was on top and then made some questionable choices. Much of his fanbase jumped ship but his art still stands up. 

Really anybody, the strips were what got me thinking about it but I'm curious if there are examples from any area or time period.

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1 hour ago, Jay Olie Espy said:

I guess I'm trying to decipher your underlying question. Is there some Golden Age art you would like to buy but are concerned that its value will decline over time?

That might not be your question but I'm going to answer it anyway. There's an adage in the hobby that goes, "Buy what you love..." It's a tired but true saying that does come with caveats. If you truly are a new collector, I will tell you that what you buy today, you may not love tomorrow (i.e. three years from today) and you may ask yourself why you bought  it in the first place. You may want to sell it to buy something you really like. We all hope that sale will make a little (or lot!) of profit, then we hope to break even when we figure out that it's harder to move. If you are a new collector, you might want to consider swimming in the shallow end of the pool (relative to your budget) on any period of art as you begin to figure out what you *really* like and love and as you begin to follow markets and their trends.

 

No I'm not wondering about that, I'm really just interested in whether there are any artists or work that have noticeably declined in popularity that were once more sought after. It's more of a for-interest's-sake than for the purpose of buying anything - sorry, I think I didn't word it very clearly.

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27 minutes ago, NewCollector101 said:

No I'm not wondering about that, I'm really just interested in whether there are any artists or work that have noticeably declined in popularity that were once more sought after. It's more of a for-interest's-sake than for the purpose of buying anything - sorry, I think I didn't word it very clearly.

Declining in popularity is not the same as declining in price. Prices from dealers tend to be sticky downward, and they just tend to stay in inventory or auction unless someone makes a good offer. Generally, I would say there has been a decline in popularity of generic 1970’s art, but that doesn’t mean you can expect price drops for things like X-Men or Adams. I am referring to stuff like “oh yeah, him”. Non-superhero work hasn’t done too well, even though War comics can be beautiful. I gather from comments on these boards that BW Smith Conan work has dropped, overall, but it isn’t an area I collect so I could be wrong. 

Edited by Rick2you2
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19 minutes ago, Rick2you2 said:

Declining in popularity is not the same as declining in price. Prices from dealers tend to be sticky downward, and they just tend to stay in inventory or auction unless someone makes a good offer. Generally, I would say there has been a decline in popularity of generic 1970’s art, but that doesn’t mean you can expect price drops for things like X-Men or Adams. I am referring to stuff like “oh yeah, him”. Non-superhero work hasn’t done too well, even though War comics can be beautiful. I gather from comments on these boards that BW Smith Conan work has dropped, overall, but it isn’t an area I collect so I could be wrong. 

Thanks, I reworded it to be more clear, I guess popularity is really what I'm curious about.

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5 hours ago, Rick2you2 said:

Declining in popularity is not the same as declining in price. Prices from dealers tend to be sticky downward, and they just tend to stay in inventory or auction unless someone makes a good offer. Generally, I would say there has been a decline in popularity of generic 1970’s art, but that doesn’t mean you can expect price drops for things like X-Men or Adams. I am referring to stuff like “oh yeah, him”. Non-superhero work hasn’t done too well, even though War comics can be beautiful. I gather from comments on these boards that BW Smith Conan work has dropped, overall, but it isn’t an area I collect so I could be wrong. 

Like you, BWS isn’t my area of interest; but to add on to your post, the prices on BWS Conan may have softened, but I don’t think it’s any less popular.

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4 hours ago, stinkininkin said:

Really?  I admit I don't collect either artist, but I thought both of them were still at their peaks, based on sales I see and the juggernaut marketing I see at shows where they are represented.  Anything you can mention specifically that identifies their decline?

I am not sure the OP can really de-link price from popularity, since popularity affects price. I know there was an Alex Ross piece I did not go after because I felt the auction took the eventual price higher than I felt the piece was worth, even though it was not too far inconsistent with the sales price of at least one other piece. I also did not see its long term value. Furthermore, I know there are a fair number of high 5 and 6 figure Ross pieces which don’t seem to sell. Does that mean he is less popular, or the pricing has outpaced perceived value? Would I still buy one at a more reasonable price? Yes. 

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5 hours ago, stinkininkin said:

Really?  I admit I don't collect either artist, but I thought both of them were still at their peaks, based on sales I see and the juggernaut marketing I see at shows where they are represented.  Anything you can mention specifically that identifies their decline?

In regards to OA only, not variants, prints etc....Ross does great originals but the prices have gone too high for the average collector. Most covers start at 20k. Love his art but just can’t justify that much for a modern painting. And with the sheer quantity being nice produced, it’s an imbalance of supply vs demand. Often times you’ll see his pieces on dealer sites for below the initial retail ask.

For Campbell, his two biggest buyers have dropped out for a few reasons which has hurt his market. A Spider-Man cover sold for around $8500 at auction last month. A few years ago even if you were able to buy one, the asking prices were 15-20k. 

Perhaps the sales of all other merchandise has made art sales a lower priority.

Edited by AnkurJ
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32 minutes ago, grapeape said:

Very good work but 20 K is a car to a lot of us. Sometimes you look at Ross and think, “he’s a great artist, he can paint anything. But, which one of these paintings has blood and guts in it?”

That comment about Ross's work pretty much summarizes my thinking as well. I would rather have lesser drafting skills and more heart. Heart is what gets the blood pumping, not just pretty prictures. 

I think that is what also bothers me about Dillon (on a much lesser price scale). Nice imagry, but no blood and guts.

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I'm an Alex Ross fan. Admittedly, I prefer his mid-nineties stuff over his 2000s work, with few exceptions. I've said before I follow his market. I think the Alex Ross market is an odd beast. He's a cover artist 99% of the time with new Marvel covers starting at $20K. Not a lot of buyers at that price point; but his BEST NEW covers do sell at $25K+. Nonetheless, to me, those prices give the impression that no one wants to collect him. If he did more interiors (and if the interiors he does complete were more readily available...) I think he would garner more interest among collectors.

Otherwise, his early prelims sell well and quick. Give or take a year ago Comiclink sold a Kingdom Come T-shirt prelim for $1100 and a few months ago Burkey sold it for ~$2.5K quickly. CL also sold that Kingdom Come Chapter divider for about $3K (it's on auction again), which was a lot more than what the initial seller wanted it for. A B/B+ Marvels page sold on eBay last fall (to the Brothers) for $4250. Hans K. quickly sold a Superman prelim for $3K. So I do think the demand and popularity is there...for the reasonable stuff.

I will concede that Alex Ross is missing from many good collections on CAF. That might say something too. Oh, and the naysayers here on the board.

P.S. If anyone has a Marvels page they want to dump before his investment plummets, talk to me!

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