Morrison - Quitely All Star Superman 07, Page 21

UPDATE: SOLD IN 2010!

For the last few years I've been saying that we're in a second "Golden Age" of comics. The quality of writing and art in many titles is as good or better than anything previously produced in the history of the medium. Some of the standouts have been - The Ultimates by Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch, Ex Machina by Brian K. Vaughan and Tony Harris, 100 Bullets by Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso, Astonishing X-Men by Josh Whedon and John Cassaday, and Alan Moore's ABC line of comics - Tom Strong (art by Chris Sprouse), and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (art by Kevin O'Neill), to name just a few.

My most recent favorite has been Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely's new Superman series. Morrison seems to be harkening back to the Man of Steel's Silver Age, where anything could happen in any given issue. And that's the fun of it - no worrying about continuity, and no need to be a Superman historian. You can just jump right in and enjoy the fun. I've taken a strong liking to Quitely's work too. My first exposure to his work didn't really impress me, but after reading this series, I'm finally beginning to see the light (it might help that he's not being inked by anyone - the pencils are scanned directly and colored). I picked up this page at San Diego Comicon in 2008, and I'd love a bunch more! I've added word balloons using Photoshop to make it more readable (click for larger image).

Killing Joke Prelim 28

UPDATE: SOLD IN 2012!

Here's another neat prelim from Alan Moore's Killing Joke, with art by Brian Bolland. I love comparing these to the printed page and seeing the differences. You can see in panel four that Bolland indicated that the Joker's face be rotated, and in the printed page, he has done just that. I also love the last panel with the Joker's reflection in the puddle. The very next panel in the book begins a flashback sequence and is nearly identical to this one - it also shows him standing over a puddle just before the "accident" that will turn him into the Joker. Moore uses this trick several times in the story when he switches from past to present and vice versa, and I'm quite fond of it.

Rusty Riley 11-07-55

The second of the two Rusty strips I picked up recenly. Love all the line work on Tex's coat. I can't say with certainty, but it appears Godwin only ever used brush which is really amazing!

Rusty Riley 01/17/55

UPDATE - SOLD THIS PIECE IN AUGUST 2008!!

As mentioned in my article for the CFA-APA 65, I believe that strip art is where you get the most bang for your buck. My personal favorites are the photo-realistic adventure strips of the 1950's and later. Guys like Alex Raymond, Stan Drake, Leonard Starr, Jose Luis Salinas, Ken Bald, Neal Adams, Frank Godwin and others were producing high quality strips, literally, on a daily basis. Since most collectors interests are driven by superhero based nostalgia, many of these great artists works can be had amazingly cheap.

I made the decision a while back to sell off my strip art collection. I haven't really regretted it, but whenever I see a particularly nice daily, it gets the wheels turning in my head. In fact, whenever I see a nice Godwin Rusty Riley, I wonder why I don't own a bunch. That changed recently as I picked up a couple of nice dailies from 1955. Here's the first one.

Unknown Floral

This painting was found at an estate sale in New York and is supposedly from the 19th century. It's got enough dirt on it, so it's plausible. I can't quite make out the signature - could be "Melancon" or something close to it. (click for larger image).... this post is dedicated to Kenny...

Henk Dekker - Boats on Beach

Another nice sea scene with some boats near the shore of a beach. This was sold as a Henk Dekker original (Dutch, 1897-1974), but I'm not sure since the signature is so hard to read. The painting is actually quite a bit darker in person but for some reason it photographs lighter. Unframed, the piece is quite small at about 7 3/4 x 5 inches.(click for larger image.)

Gregory Gallo II

This was, I think, the very first original piece of art I ever purchased. I bought it from the artist, whom I worked for many years ago (proabaly around 1992), for what was, at the time, a relatively large amount of money. There are actually about 6 or 7 paintings in this "series" that look very similar to this one in compisition and color. They were all very detailed, and were my favorite pieces he had done. I had to have one and I hit him up at the right time with a good cash offer! (click for larger image.)

Gregory Gallo

This painting was a gift of sorts. I used to work for the artist back in New York a long time ago. I saw this painting the morning after it was completed and was really blown away by it. I made such a fuss over it that my friend sold it to me for $2. It's very large at about 4 feet by 4 feet and is dated 10/14/92. The photo is not the best since the canvas is not on the stretchers at the moment. (click for larger image.)

Edgar Freyberg Seascape

This is a very nice seascape by the German artist Edgar Freyberg (b. 1927). It's an oil on canvas and is pretty large at 24" x 32". I'm told his work is in several museums and I know he has sold in auctions around the world. I believe there is a gallery in London that currently represents him. (click for larger image.)

Koemann

This painting is by an artist I haven't been able to identify. The seller says it's Dutch and the signature reads "Koemann", but the signature is not definitive in person. Still, a very lovely little painting with great light. This one is quite small - without frame it measures 5 1/2 x 8 inches and is painted on an oak board. (click for larger image.)

Jan Valach

My very first oil painting! Don't know anything about the artist except that he might be Czech. This is pretty large at 20 x 28 without the frame. (click for larger image.)

Asajj Ventress by Mahmud Asrar

This is a great piece by a relatively unknown artist Mahmud Asrar. I think he's super-talented and reminds me a lot of the great Adam Hughes who he cites as an influence (click for larger image).

UPDATE: SOLD THIS PIECE IN JUNE OF 2008!!

Art Adams Wolfman

I can't get enough of these incredibly rendered Art Adams pinups. While I generally prefer the sexy female characters he does, this one was too nice to pass up. (click for larger scan.)

Public School 49, Queens NY

This is where I went to school from kindergarten through the sixth grade. My mother also attended the school when she was a young girl. Our house was half a mile from the school and I walked it everyday right through Juniper Vally park. Many years after I attended, the school was renamed Dorothy K. Bonawit Kole school. I searched the web but all I could find out was that she was a teacher and principal in the New York area sometime around the 1940's - 1960's (I think). The photo above was probably taken just after the completion of construction in 1932. You can see the old Elmhurst gas tanks (constructed in 1910) in the background. The empty lot in the foreground was completely covered in housing while I attended (as was all of Queens). I took a trip to NY in October of 2006 and took the picture of the school seen below (click for larger images).

Killing Joke Prelim 3

UPDATE: SOLD THIS PIECE IN AUGUST OF 2008!

The most recent KJ prelim I picked up featuring a nice shot of the Joker! (Interesting note: the pencil image has a slight red cast to it. That's because I took a picture of it with my digital camera behind my house while the San Diego forestfires of 2007 were raging. Lots of ash in the sky and everything tinged in red. Eerie... (Brian Bolland pencils. Click for larger image.)