(New Bedford, MA – November 28, 2024) The 501(c)(3)non-profit Inkwell Awards have more auction listings to launch this Black Friday, November 29, including their second tribute auction from their Dave Simons Estate Collection as first reported about last May. This time the organization has scheduled a unique lot of original art well-suited for the holiday season that will be on their eBay block for a week. It’s the complete comic book story to the Evil Dead franchise’s Army of Darkness: Ash’s Christmas Horror One-shot as published by Dynamite Entertainment back in 2008, from his last works the year before Dave Simons died. It consists of thirty consecutive pages of hand-drawn pencils and inks by Dave including 2 splashes and a double-page splash and also his main cover to it. “Primarily an ink artist since the late 1970s, Dave worked on a myriad of titles at Marvel Comics and was especially known for his embellished art on Ghost Rider and Howard the Duck. Sometimes he had the opportunity to flex his muscles on both pencils and inks” shared Inkwell Awards director Bob Almond, “And this story showcased his diversity as an artist with realism, cheesecake, horror, whimsy, and cartooning where he adapts styles from Christmas classics over the decades.”
Dave Simons joined the Inkwell Awards core committee in late 2008 but after a long bout of cancer, he succumbed to it in 2009. The Inkwells dedicated a scholarship fund in his name for the Kubert Art School that year and have raised $15,000 to date. His belongings, including his collection of original art, were inherited by his sister Bette who subsequently donated them about 15 years later to the non-profit for their fundraising. Last summer they offered up a couple of pieces of original art with Howard the Duck by Gene Colan and one of those pages was inked by Dave and was also centered around Santa Claus for a special Howard the Duck magazine Christmas issue. Bob added “We used to have sales on what we coined “Black (Ink) Friday” but that idea never really took off. We hope this themed auction lot, combined additionally with 22 seriously discounted relistings, will make a difference for our needs this season and someone will become the next home for this significant artistry in comic book history.”
The Inkwell Awards is the only official 501(c)(3) non-profit organization whose mission is to promote and educate regarding the art form of comic-book inking, as well as annually recognize the best ink artists and their work. Established in 2008, the Inkwells are overseen by a volunteer committee of industry professionals and assisted by various professional ambassadors and contributors. They sponsor the Dave Simons Inkwell Memorial Scholarship Fund for the Kubert School and host the Joe Sinnott Hall of Fame Award.
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