Q&A with James Bella

Which piece in your gallery is your favorite and why?

When I first got into collecting original art, my grail piece was a Strangers in Paradise cover by Terry Moore, my favorite comic book. I wasn't searching too long before I came across the variant cover to volume 3 #1 that also featured Jim Lee art. Hmmm, what do you do after you find your grail?

Please tell us a little about yourself.

I'm 55 and married with an adult son (selling real estate in NYC) and a 10'x10' man cave/closet. I enjoy looking at the framed pieces on my walls while getting dressed for work each morning. I am a member of Comic Art Group on Long Island, NY that meets about once a month to share our latest acquisitions and chat about the hobby, conventions and when are we going to order pizza.

How long have you been collecting comic art and what prompted you to start?

I've been reading and collecting comics for over 45 years but just starting collecting OA in 2014 after attending Comic Art Con on a whim after bumping into an old friend who mentioned he collected art. I bought my first piece, a Byrne Generations II page after I spent over three hours finding something within my budget. I always set my budget based on my eBay comic sales and have passed on many a piece so I don't overextend my finances... and I’ve regretted more than a few.

How do you display/store your collection at home?

A dozen or so are framed in my man cave and the rest are in portfolios within easy reach to flip through. I use small shelves with a lip to display my many sketch covers. I really need to post new photos of my room. I have a specific wall mainly for some of my favorite Terry Moore pieces.

What are your top five most wanted original pages or commissions?

A Kirby page from Kamandi #29, my first comic. A Legion of Super-Heroes page with at least the original three: Cosmic Boy, Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl. A page from some of the independent comics that I read, like TMNT, Concrete, Dreadstar or Omaha Cat Dancer. A Kevin Maguire Justice League page. Superhero scenes around NYC landmarks. A splash or cover of a major super-hero like Batman, Superman, Captain America or Spider-Man that a non-comic fan seeing my man cave would recognize instantly. I love my framed pieces but I need to explain a lot.