Thor Artist’s Edition, Original Art Cover “Remarque” Limited Variant, 2011/2012 & Sketch, 2012
Here are two terrific Walter Simonson Thor pieces with equally terrific “origin” stories.
First up: IDW Artist’s Edition Editor Scott Dunbier developed a unique concept with one of his earliest volumes — A blank cover that the artist could then draw on, making a limited amount of copies of the book true originals.
A challenge for the printer, but mission accomplished, at least with this volume.
Walter and Scott agreed on a price, and Walter drew approximately a dozen of these covers. I say approximately, because of some confusion about whether it was going to be 10 or 15 of them, and Scott ultimately chose to offer them privately to some well-known original art collectors in a addition to a handful of IDW’s senior management team. I have no recollection how many were actually ultimately created. And I’m not positive all the completed drawings were scanned.
(Yes, that is the way comics works sometimes, folks.)
In addition to the piece I own, I’ve seen about four others, and like this one, they are all terrific. The only challenge is figuring out a creative way to display one properly and safely. If anyone has solved that puzzle, feel free to chime in.
The second Walter piece is looser, but extra special. Walter generously drew it in my office after SDCC while I was tied up in a meeting elsewhere, with the plan to personalize my “regular” edition of the Artist’s Edition.
It was only after the art was completed that I noticed it was the book was damaged printer’s proof version, instead of my actual personal copy.
A bummer, certainly, but a solution presented itself with the help of a handy X-Acto blade. I removed the page, trimmed it to a more precise 11×17 size, and framed it.
Voila. Now I can view it all the time, instead of just upon opening the book.
As they say, it’s in the permanent collection.
It’s Thor’s 60th anniversary this year, so we have a few more posts lined up to celebrate Marvel’s God of Thunder. (Of course, technically, the Thor legend is eon’s old, but, as always, we digress.)
