A dramatic original cover by Rafael Cortiella Juancomartí for the Spanish comic, Combate, is expected to sell for at least €400 in a Catawiki auction tomorrow, Thursday 11th December 2025.
Combate: O todo o nada (“Combat: All or nothing”) was Published in 1976. The art measures: 35 x 24 cm, created in colour in mixed media / gouache / acrylics on cardboard. You can bid on it here.
The auction also includes Axa, Kathy and Wendy, and Modesty Blaise newspaper strip art by Enrique Badia Romero. View the full auction here
Rafael Cortiella Juancomartí (25th December 1931 2nd May 2019) was a prominent illustrator, draftsman, painter, and advertising and film poster artist. His illustrations for the covers of romance, western, horror, science fiction, crime, and adventure novels were published in countries such as Spain, England, Germany, and France, and elsewhere.
“His covers are true works of art,” notes the seller, The Orion of Comics, “and he is considered one of Spain’s greatest and most prolific cover artists, with international recognition. As a painter, he exhibited in several art galleries.
“He also illustrated toy boxes, such as those for the well-known Madelman, and in the 1980s, he created posters and covers for films distributed on video. For nearly 15 years, he ran a drawing and painting workshop-school.”
Head downthetubes for…
• Lambiek: Rafael Cortiella Juancomartí
• Tebeosfera: Rafael Cortiella Juancomartí
• Dolls, Comics and Drawings: Rafael Cortiella Juancomartí
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John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.
He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.
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