There isn’t much British comic art on offer in the current international comic art auctions we follow on the European site Catawiki, but there are some rather eye catching works from a variety of international artists on offer.
On the British comics front, there’s a smashing page of “Robot Archie” by Ted Kearon, from the 1963 story first puplished in Lion, “The Grey Ghost“…
Two art works by Italian artist Candita Giuseppe, also caught my eye – a recent study of the Italian comic character Julia Kendall, her look based on the actress Audrey Hepburn, and a striking image of Robert E. Howard’s Red Sonja…
Criminologist and police consultant Julia Kendall, features in the long-running Bonelli Mystery series, “Julia“. “Like a lot of Bonelli protagonists, her likeness is based on a famous actor, in this case Audrey Hepburn,” comics fan Knut Robert Knutsen tells us. Candita is one of several artists who has worked on the series.
Also on offer is a homage to Fritz Leiber’s Fafhrd & the Gray Mouser by French artist Cyril Pontet, on sale from the artist himself, inspired by the artist’s childhood love of the fantasy saga. Featured are Faceless Sheelba and Seven-Eyed Ningauble, mentors to the heroes.
Pontet is perhaps best known for his work on the Dargaud series, Chroniques de la Lune Noire, replacing original artist Olivier Ledroit, published in English by Europe Comics as The Black Moon Chronicles.
It’s also great to see some art by Italian artist Giancarlo Caracuzzo on offer, a 2009 piece, titled “UFO Robot, Goldrake e Actarus”. Well known for his work for Marvel Comics, it was a pleasure to work with him a few years back, on a number of projects.
Also for sale is a beautiful frontispiece for the recently-published second volume of the French series, Marlysa, L’Ombre de Dompour, with art by Jean-Pierre Dessin. (The albums are available in French from AmazonUK, Affiliate Link).
Finally for this brief round up, how about a striking original character design by Henri Reculé, for the series Jack Wolfgang, also published in English by Europe Comics?
With the invention of Super Mega Tofu, civilisation has seen the advent of a fragile peace — between animals and humans, between carnivores and herbivores. It’s nothing short of a miracle, and Jack Wolfgang, world-renowned restaurant critic, travels the world sampling Super Mega Tofu in all of its varieties. What better cover for a CIA special agent?
Unfortunately, while we can buy the albums, due to changes post-Brexit, neither this artwork, or the Marlysa frontispiece, are available for sale directly to UK collectors.
Let’s hope the British government addresses these issues soon, also impacting the sale of books and comics by British independent publishers to European comic fans, sales dropping by some 80 per cent for some since leaving the European Union.
Potential Additional International Auction Costs
This advice box was last updated on Friday 6th May 2022
The UK’s departure from the European Union means there may be additional import duties on sales.
Prior to Brexit, the effective rate of UK tax on imports of art was 5%, which is lower than most other European countries. An owner could previously import an artwork to the UK from outside the EU and was then free to transport it to other EU countries, where the import tax rates may be higher, without incurring any further import-related tax charges. If the owner then wished to bring the artwork back to the UK, there would also have been no further tax charge.
The Guardian previously reported that online orders up to £135 are now supposed to have the UK’s prevailing VAT rate added at the point of sale by the EU retailer, which has to have registered with HM Revenue & Customs.
While buying from European sellers carries the sting of larger costs, the auction house Catawiki does now endeavour to provide an estimate of those in its lot descriptions.
Unfortunately, many smaller EU-based retailers have decided that the paperwork of collecting UK VAT is not worth the hassle and as a result will no longer supply UK consumers. It has also meant that some British sellers will no longer export to Europe.
The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.
He’s the writer of “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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