13 Responses to “About Original Art”

1. Nyek! - edgartadeo.com » A Minute Or Two Is Free on February 14th, 2008 8:34 pm

   [...] waiting for Gerry to post something about the sketching in a comic book signing or a small comic convention is not [...]

2. Ed on February 14th, 2008 8:38 pm

   A minute or two is FREE. :P

3. Rod Samonte on February 15th, 2008 3:33 am

   Gerry,
   In the last comic convention I went to, Wizard World Convention, Tim Sale, J. Scott-Cambell, Humberto Ramos were doing sketches, and they had the longest lines. Scott-Campbell was charging $50 to a $100 for a 10-15 minute sketch, didn’t know what Tim Sale was charging, if he was charging at all, but Humberto Ramos was sketching for free. Whilce Portacio was there too, but I didn’t see him sketching.
   Rod

4. Francis Lim on February 15th, 2008 11:09 am

   Hello Gerry,
   I’m a businessman by profession but a comic artist at heart and my wife’s a dentist/orthodontist. And your decision to charge for sketches is very sound. It’s no different from a physician who charges for his consultations. In the same vein, physicians aren’t too happy when people walk up to them and corner them into a free consultation. Of course, a quickly thrown piece of advice is okay, but if they have to break out the stethoscope….

5. gilbert monsanto on February 15th, 2008 2:18 pm

   We have to stick together on this, para na rin sa ikabubuti ng craft natin. I’ll draw more detailed stuffs pag may bayad :)

6. Jerome Dizon on February 15th, 2008 3:39 pm

   Gerry, tama yan! yung last convention I attended Gary Frank charges AUS$15 for a fifteen min sketch while Whilce offers a full page commission.

7. Eusebio Yu on February 15th, 2008 7:30 pm

   Gerry,

   Now you’ve open Pandora’s box! Kidding aside, I have a different take on this. Your charging for a more detailed sketch is perfectly logical and within your rights as an artist. ( Btw, thanks again for your Elmer sketch at John Beatty signing! )But consider this : How often does artists such as yourself get together for a signing? Maybe once every couple of months? Do we really take that much of your time? Most of us who request a sketch are not too picky and are happy with whatever you draw. There’s probably a few in every bunch who prefer more elaborate sketches. Wouldn’t it be more prudent to acede to their request than ‘risk’ alienating the less demanding fans? How are we to know if the one we requested is a ‘ one or two minute sketch ‘ ? Maybe you could tell the concerned person, ” hanggang ganito lang po ang kaya natin ha, para di masydo matagal ” I think that would be much better. The goodwill you generate far exceeds whatever perceived lost income you might have. Thanks!

8. Gerry Alanguilan on February 15th, 2008 8:28 pm

   Eusebio… the good thing is, all this will be facilitated by the store. I don’t know the specifics at this point, but if you want a quick sketch or an involved sketch, you need to say so at the store and you will be in turn given a stub according to what you want. The stub will tell us if it’s a quick sketch or a full drawing. All that ugly business about money that no artist wants to talk about doesn’t need to pass between us.

   To be honest, it’s very difficult to talk about this, and other artists probably won’t and just let me take the heat, but that’s OK. I think some of us has to start talking about it. You might feel good about getting a free drawing, and we get some “goodwill” because of it, but some of us come away feeling taken advantage of. And that’s the truth. Specially when I see some of my free sketches on Ebay. The “goodwill” that I get is that I’m this artist who does free drawings. Many of those who ask me for drawings really don’t care about my work. They don’t care I create things like Elmer or Timawa or Wasted. I’m just this faceless artist who does drawings for free so let’s go and ask him to draw Captain America. Never mind that I’ve never drawn Captain America, and that I’ve never been involved in any comic book that has anything to do with Captain America.

   So I’m very thankful when people do ask me to draw my own characters, because that means a lot. Because that means they know my work, read my work and appreciate it. And that’s why I’ll still do quick free sketches of Elmer and any of my other characters.

   But I am willing to draw any character for people, and I’ll work hard on it, but I would appreciated being compensated for it.

   As comics creators, I feel that our obligation to the paying readers is to come up with good comic books, and that’s all. The money you pay, pays for the comic book and nothing more.

   Sometimes, readers feel that we’re obligated to more than that. But we’re not, you know?

   Think of it this way… if you enjoy Leinil’s comic books, and you like his work and you appreciate the work that he does, isn’t just appropriate that if he creates a drawing specially for you, that you compensate him for it, in appreciation for the work that he has done?

9. Rod Samonte on February 16th, 2008 1:17 am

   Gerry,
   Bakit si Leinil ang ginawa mong example? Kamaganak ba ni Eusebio Yu si Leinil. As for me, I would never ask an artist for a free sketch. Humberto Ramos was doing free sketches at the Wizard World Convention, but I didn’t ask for one. Just appreciating an artist’s work that’s already out in print is good enough for me and also because I know that the artist could never do as good a work-of-art sketching in front of someone as one that he could do in his studio. I say yes, definitely charge a fee for anything that you draw. You’ve spent a lifetime perfecting and developing your skills and it should not be for free.
   Rod

10. Sandy on February 16th, 2008 4:12 am

    Gerry,
    I’m glad you brought up eBay. Although the majority of comic fans ask for sketches/drawings for their personal enjoyment, there are a few that ask for sketches specifically for the purpose of resale. As a collector myself, I consider each drawing an artist creates as original comic art. The fact is, original comic art has become a big business thus creating a few of these people that take advantage of these events.

    Prior to coming back home, I was actively selling at the various U.S. comic conventions (including the San Diego Comic Con) as early as 1986. I did about 15-20 of these shows each year. At each of these shows, there were always artists that attended and the majority of them charged for sketches/drawings. It wasn’t often that an artist did sketches for free unless they were sponsored by the big publishers. The minimum an artist would charge for a drawing was about $20 and that was way back about 15 years ago. Today, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was around at least $40 for a quick sketch/drawing.

    When I finally opened my first shop, two of the earliest store signing events I hosted were with Sam Kieth and the other one, Tim Vigil. Autographs were free, but drawings were $20 and upwards depending on the detail. Again, this was around 15 years ago. So wether it was at a convention or at a store signing, artists almost always charged for drawings.

    I don’t know how the free sketch/drawing thing started at my events, but I feel partly responsible that it has gotten out of hand. I know these events are extremely tiring for all the artists involved and you guys are all just too nice to tell me otherwise. There have been many times when random passerbys have come up asking for a free drawing for their son or grandchild and you guys gladly accomodated their requests. By charging for a drawing, it will cut down on these kinds of requests.

    The comic fans that have attended my past events in the last couple of years are a lucky bunch. John Beatty, for example, did sketches for free. I think he charges a minimum of $30 in the U.S. for a quick sketch. Leinil Yu, Carlo Pagulayan, Philip Tan are three of the biggest names in comics today. They’ve done sketches for free. So, to Ed Tadeo, Leinil Yu, Philip Tan, John Beatty, Carlo Pagulayan, Jeff Huet, Wilson Tortosa, Jay Anacleto, Mico Suayan, Lan Medina, Gilbert Monsanto, and of course to you Gerry, THANK YOU ALL for taking the time out of your hectic schedules to accomodate all the comic fans.

    Gerry, I believe the majority of comic fans will understand and will gladly pay for their drawing done by their favorite artist. Not all will be happy and not all will be willing to pay but you can’t please everyone. That’s just how it is. I actually commend you for stepping up to the plate and I’m sure you’ll be getting some heat. Can you imagine if Alex Ross or Jim Lee came out here to do a signing? I guarantee you, not 1 person would complain if they charged an arm and a leg for sketches and the line would be endless.

11. Gerry Alanguilan on February 16th, 2008 8:45 am

    Rod, he.he. I used Leinil as an example because I felt very uncomfortable using myself as an example. Imagine that statement going like…

    “Think of it this way… if you enjoy my comic books, and you like my work and you appreciate the work that I do….” and so on. And weird e. I couldn’t continue writing it. So it became easier to use someone else like Leinil, because he’s easily the most popular of us here.

    Sandy, thanks for your thoughts and understanding. :D

12. Eusebio Yu on February 16th, 2008 7:10 pm

    Gerry,

    I agree with you that seeing your sketch being sold on ebay leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Although technically when you give something to someone, it is their right to do whatever the hell they want with it. But that doesn’t make it right. Let me assure you that most of us appreciate what you do. You don’t have to do it, but you do. That also goes to all those artists who gave their time to accomodate their fans. Don’t feel taken advantage of. There’s always some guy trying to make a quick buck. But seriously I don’t those drawings are gonna pay for their kid’s college.

    And to Sandy. I also appreciate what you’re trying to do. Very few comic shop propreitors would take the time out to give their customers a chance to meet their idols. What you did was not only good PR, but will also endear you to the fans. Thanks also for giving away those variant comics during the last signing.

    I guess the bottom line is certain parameters have to be set to avoid miscommunication.

13. Rod Samonte on February 17th, 2008 1:59 am

    Sandy,
    Wow, except for Roy Allan Martinez, you’ve just mentioned some of the best and most talented Filipino names in the field of comics guesting at your events. Wouldn’t it be great to have a Pinoy Komiks published with all those guys illustrating? Who says there’s a dearth of talented Pinoy comics illustrators? Pinoy comics (or at least Pinoy comic illustration) is alive and well, except of course many of them are working in U.S. comics. But after all we’re in the age of the internet. The world is their oyster.
    Rod