Q&A with Ivan R

Which piece in your gallery is your favorite and why?

Not an easy question.... I would say John Romita’s Captain America #142 splash page, because Romita is my favorite artist’s ever and because that page is a concentration of emotions, thrill, drama, love…. Just action is missing, but who cares?!?!

Please tell us a little about yourself.

I'm a 48 year old comic art collector from Italy. I've been reading American and Italian comic books for as long as I can remember. I work for a Spanish petrochemical company. In addition to collecting comic books and original comic art, my other passions include running marathons and I'm a big fan of football (soccer). My favorite team is Inter Milan, of course!

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

I've always been a comic book and art lover. I bought my first original page 22 years ago at an Italian comic con. I try every day to improve the quality of my collection. I've made many mistakes over the past two decades. But right now I'm pretty satisfied with my collection and, as I said before, I continue to search for pages that stir my emotions. That emotional response, in my opinion, is the essence of art.

How do you display/store your collection at home?

A few pieces from my collection are framed, but the rest are stored in portfolios. I try to look at my collection as often as possible, and share the artwork with other art collectors and friends.

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

My top 5 wish list would include: - A Jack Kirby Thor page - A Sal Buscema page from Defenders #1 - A Steve Ditko Spider-Man page - A Walt Simonson page from Thor #337-367 - A Jim Steranko published Marvel page