ComicArtFans.com: A Virtual Comic Art Museum

     In my previous post, I discussed how the world of original comic art sales have moved to the web. While this move seemed immanent when looking at the economic opportunity and global access created by the world wide web, it lacked a method of search and indexing. That is to say, there's been no master catalogue of original comic art... until now. This void has been filled by the website ComicArtFans.com (or CAF to those in the know). While many people have started initially searching on eBay for comic art, they eventually make their way to CAF to start beginning their search in earnest. Since CAF tracks all of the eBay, Heritage and Comic Link auctions, you can begin your search on CAF and also find comparative prices in its classified section.
     If you are new to the world of original comic art, this is the first website you need to see. CAF has become the world's great archive of original comic art. Where eBay.com has become the major marketplace for comic art, CAF become comic art's great online museum. Collectors join the site and create virtual galleries in which they place the scanned an uploaded images of their original art collections. Many artists create accounts to showcase their work. You can join for free today and share your collection with others. If you really love collecting and trading comic art, you can upgrade to a premium account for $50.00 USD per year and use their classified section, get email alerts when pieces by your favorite artists come to auction and several other perks. No longer does the average comic book reader have to wait to go to a convention to see original art, they can browse CAF for hours and never get bored. That's because the good folks have incentivized everyone, including yours truly, to help build this great modern hagia sofia of comic art threw crowdsourcing.
     The website takes advantage of the desire of collectors and artists to show off their stuff. In return we get an impressive art index and search tool for finding comic art and other collectors with whom we can connect. Under each piece of artwork is the opportunity for fans browsing the site to post comments about the art. CAF has become an indispensable tool for tracking the authenticity of the artwork as well as keeping track of its recent owners/sellers for the sake of posterity. In the website's item management form, CAF allows you to track the date of purchases and the price paid. It also allows collectors to add the names of the artist(s) that created the piece and a brief description. This type of authenticating information is commonplace in the world of fine art, but is just starting to become the habit with comic art; thanks in no small part to CAF.