Contributed by collector and Overstreet Advisor Art Cloos
Photos by Alice Cloos
On August 27, 2023, the New Jersey Comic Art Con held its summer convention, returning to the Holiday Inn in Hasbrouck Heights, NJ. Billed by show promoter Joe Veteri as the tri-state area’s premiere event to buy, sell, and trade original comic book art, this was the 29th edition of the show. The con has returned to its former venue to be closer to Manhattan, which is a short bus or car drive from the Big Apple and is near Teterboro Airport.
The dealer list was comprised of some of the top comic art sellers from across the country, including Will Gabri-El, Albert Moy, Nathan Rose Anthony Snyder, Jim Wardon, Steve Korshak, Rich Donnelly, Bechara Maalouf, Hans Kosenkranius, Dan Pottick, Fisch Benz, and Brad Savage. ComicConnect was in attendance, represented by Micah Spivak. The guest artist was Jim Steranko.
There were no comic books for sale; they are not allowed and never have been. This is strictly a comic art show. Veteri is proud of the fact that some of the most prolific comic art dealers and collectors in the nation choose NJ Comic Art Con as their exclusive comic art only convention to attend.
Allie and I got to the show just as it opened and there were already collectors checking out the vendor displays and going through art portfolios on the various dealer tables. There had to be almost 30 tables with a wide variety of original comic art with much more then what one would find at a traditional comic convention. As he does at every show, dealer Anthony Snyder had a wall display that took up an entire wall and his tables were filled with portfolios of art. His booth is never one that a buyer could go through in a few minutes.
There was a strong showing of Silver, Bronze, and Modern Age comic art. At this edition, there was some serious Golden Age art on display, including an entire wall of art at one dealer’s booth. In particular there were some absolutely amazing Golden Age Batman pieces that I was drooling over. There was a good amount of comic book covers, and dealers had portfolios full of original comic book pages including splashes. Over the last few years, in both vintage comic sales and original art, Marvel has tended to dominate but at this show there was a lot of DC art of all kinds. Mary Kosenkranius of Tri-State Original Art commented on how strong sales have been this year, which I was glad to hear. Spivak told me that A-level original art continues to sell well.
We ran into a lot of familiar faces at this show, like our friend Frank Giella, the son of comic artist Joe Giella, who was showing off one of his portfolios in the lobby. We met up with friend Ankur Jetley, and we saw Dan Gallo, the original co-creator of the show who was busy making deals. My friend Matthew Stock and I had a nice conversation, and he scored a nice pick up for his collection. A highlight for me was meeting up with Manny Maris, a legend in the hobby. Manny is a second generation member of comic fandom who spent time working for Phil Seuling at his New York Comic Art Shows, an authority on the history of comic fanzines.
One of the things that I think is very cool and happens at every Veteri show was seeing groups of collectors around the hotel lobby discussing their purchases of the day, debating the merits of one artist from another, and negotiating deals with each other for trades or cash. This happens at every Comic Art Con and is part of what makes the New Jersey show special. Yes, I chimed in too. In the past, Veteri has commented on this as part of his Comic Art Con’s unique value. Many deals are done collector to collector.
The hotel restaurant offers breakfast for guests and dinner as well, and kids 18 and younger eat for free. However it is closed for lunch and does not serve dinner on Sunday nights. There are eateries within a short drive.
In addition it is conveniently located and surrounded by major attractions like American Dream, a mega-mall and entertainment complex featuring DreamWorks Water Park, Nickelodeon Universe, and Big Snow the indoor ski and snowboard park. In addition neighboring sites include the Meadowlands Racetrack and the MetLife Sports Complex and all are a short drive from the hotel. For those looking to make the show part of a weekend getaway there was a block of rooms at the hotel that were offered at a discounted rate.
The show hours ran from 9:30 AM to 4 PM, admission was $15, and children got in for free. For those with mobility issues the hotel is very accessible throughout the building. There was plenty of parking available on the hotel grounds.
The 2024 show dates and times of the NJ Comic Art Con have not been set yet and Veteri told me that it would be at least a month before they are. But the show will continue at its location in the Holiday Inn located on 283 NJ-17 in Hasbrouck Heights, NJ.
Veteri can be reached at jveteri@coopmail.net or by calling (973) 768-6649 to inquire about vending at his next show. Professional artists are encouraged to apply for a show table. For more information on dates and attending future shows, check his website at www.VeteriProductions.com or his Comic Art Con Facebook page.
For more photos from New Jersey Comic Art Con, jump to our In the Limelight coverage.
