Wednesday 10 September 2014

The Less Work, the Better-- A Restoration Paradox


Sean Michael Robinson:

Hello everyone,

Pages continue to trickle in. This week we received two pages from Jason Crosby, Sales and Auction Coordinator for the art auction house/website ComicLink, who are now partnering with us in the hunt for pages. We were alerted to the pages by sharp-eyed Cerebus Dragnet participant Gregory Kessler. Thanks Gregory, and thanks Jason! 

The two pages sent by Jason included this beautiful scan of a later High Society page.



It's an uncomfortable fact of restoration. The pages that we have to spend the most amount of time on are ultimately the ones that will look the worst. Because the better your source material, the better and more effortless your end product can be. I'm very happy when I come up with workarounds or back-end solutions to improve flawed materials, but I'd much rather be spending my time plowing through pristine materials, and producing the best books possible.

So please, PLEASE, if you have access to any original artwork, or you know where some can be found, contact us and let us know. At this point, every scan we get significantly improves the book, allows it to be even closer to its potential. And although it's only a small token of appreciation, Dave has a nifty finder's prize in the works for those who contribute.

Lastly, from the collection of illustrator Dean Reeves, here's a preview of things to come. When I get a goody like this in the mailbox, my fannish impulses take over and I feel obligated to ask. When, Dave? When do we get to these stories?

And back comes the fax, which reads something like the following.

"We'll get to those when we finish the other 16 books, Sean."

Well, uh, back to work then.



Want to hear about some particular aspect of the restoration? Drop me a line in the comments!

Sean Michael Robinson can be found online at Living the Line.

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