Batman The Dark Knight Returns Unmasked by Frank Miller and Klaus Janson Sketch Cover

This is the a sketch cover illustration of Batman Unmasked from The Dark Knight Returns. Pencilled by Frank Miller inked by Klaus Janson. I am so happy to see how this turned out, this is a really special piece. I can’t believe I am able to add to my collection. To see Frank and Klaus collaborate again is magic. Unmasked heroes is a very strong theme of my collection. Seeing our heroes unmasked gives them a vulnerability. I have had the good fortune of adding some incredible examples and this is easily one of my favorites. The Dark Knight Returns and Batman Year One are MASTERPIECES. Fearless storytelling that genuinEly changed the medium of comics and how their storytelling could affect a character and impact pop culture. Frank Miller along with collaborators Klaus Janson, Lynn Varley, and David Mazzucchelli stories had as much influence on the character of Batman as his creators Bill Finger and Bob Kane, if not more. The Dark Knight Returns and Year One is the 1980’s synthesized in comic form, Frank Miller’s writing poetry carved in granite. It changed how I saw and read comics.
At C2E2 2017 I had the opportunity to meet Frank when I purchased a Frank Miller VIP Meet and Greet Experience. I was initially drawn to the opportunity because the experience came with a Frank Miller “Dark Knight Returns” Batman head sketch. It was a simple sketch that I am so happy to have in my art collection. I was just starting to make my deep dive into original art collecting and I thought it would be the closest I would ever get to owning an original piece by Frank. Fortunately, I was very wrong about that. What came to be more valuable for me was the time I spent talking with Frank. 
Our encounter was brief but for me, very meaningful. The traditional Frank Miller scowl in the included picture hides a genuine warmth. I am aware that I did pay for the experience but even paying for an experience like this doesn’t mean you will have a good experience; I had a great one. He was gracious as he signed my books, my favorite being the dogeared trade paperback which changed my life when I bought when I was twelve at Phantom of the Attic, that one I made sure he personalized. I thanked him for his hard work and countless contributions to my favorite medium. I said he changed how I read comics, when in an interview, he said (and I paraphrase) more than any other medium the reader controls the speed of the story and I want them to slow down." That changed how I read comics going forward. I told him I wish I could say something more thoughtful and profound. He indicated my remarks were more than enough. I thanked him again and added how much I am enjoying DKIII and his artwork in the mini comics "it's very "Punk Rock Kirby" he smiled again and said "I've never heard that, it's weird and I like it. He turned to Brian Azzarello who was sitting next to him. “We need to get that on a shirt.” I concluded by wishing him a great con.
Frank Miller has evolved as a creator from a more traditional comic storytelling to a more of a cartoonist. I don't think he wants to tell the straight up superhero story anymore, which is fine. Frank Miller is a creator whose contributions to the medium are hard to completely quantify. He is a complicated person who has fought some demons and come out the other side damaged, but hopefully better. I remember the final lines of “The Dark Knight Returns”, “…Here in the endless cave. It begins here—An army—to bring sense to a world plagued by worse than thieves and murders… This will be a good life… …Good Enough.”
I hope Frank has come to a similar realization as well and is thinking, “This will be a good life… …Good Enough”