Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Topics of anime/other animation art and collectibles.
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cutiebunny
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Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by cutiebunny »

Since there hasn't been much in the way of new topics on the board, I thought it might be fun to revive one from about a decade ago. Back when writing 'cels' pretty much covered everyone.

(For reference - viewtopic.php?f=70&t=19875 )

The original thread mentioned that most of us wouldn't have all but a select few pieces 5-15 years down the road. It's interesting to note that the majority of those who originally posted are no longer active on the board.

When do you think you will, realistically, stop collecting?

And, if you were around back then & posted, care to update your original post?
--------

This was part of my original post on the topic -
I've collected cels since June 2003. I'm at the point where I'm very satisfied with my collection. While I've always been rather picky as to the cels that I buy(ie. I'd never purchase anything done by the Toei 'secondary animator squad'), I've grown far more selective as the cels that I wished to acquire were slowly added into my collection. I've obtained the majority of sequences that I wanted to obtain, which, I suppose, seems to indicate that my purchases will likely be dwindling.

I have no intent on leaving this hobby and, as long as prices are somewhat reasonable and there's still a decent supply out there, I'll purchase those items that meet my specifics. I'd like to leave my collection in the hands of a museum one day...so that future generations can partake in the beauty of manually done artwork. That, and, I definitely don't want any relatives to squabble or squander these gorgeous pieces for chump change.
First of all, it's rather nostalgic to read what I wrote almost a decade ago. It's interesting to note how absolute I was with what I wanted to happen with my artwork after I die. I still feel this way, especially in light of some recent drama with a friend. Makes me happy that I've never won the lottery; I can't imagine what it must feel like for people to hope you die so they can inherit your stuff.

If you asked 2006 CB if she'd be collecting artwork in 2016, that would have been a no. I sort of figured that I'd get what I want and then move on to something else. And, I guess, in a way I have. I rarely buy production artwork anymore. I am almost exclusively into signed sketches from the people who create anime and manga.

Do I see a date when I'll stop collecting? Yeah, I do, though it isn't anything along the line of a certain day, month or year. I've noticed that my purchases are coming less and less from YJ and more from conventions. I was surprised how much I spent last year. I don't think I've ever dropped that much on artwork in the past and coming from someone who is usually pretty thrifty, it's not a feeling I particularly enjoy. And it wasn't an issue of being unable to control myself, but rather that the stars aligned and so many artists that I love were in the US and drew a lot of nice things. So far, I don't feel the I'll be spending as much as I did last year, but this is largely because those artists that have been announced this year are mostly artists that I've either met or have no real interest in.
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by sensei »

Interesting: I did not respond in 2006, though I was in the middle of the most active part of my collecting then: I was drawing a good salary, was becoming dramatically more interested in a wider range of series, had lots of room to grow, and grow I did. What I would have said then was "probably not for a good long time," and in any case that turned out to be true, as I continue to add items to my collection, though with greater selectivity and more emphasis on sketches, which are less problematic from a conservation point of view than cels. The cels are chemically active, and so there undoubtedly will come a time in the next decade when I pass this part of my collection on to hands who can more actively do the things that will keep them healthy.

I have come to face facts on this front: probably ten years is all I have (with luck) to maintain the room and energy to keep up this collection. Maybe less, though follow-up tests to my prostate surgery have been encouraging. Then I will need to move to a smaller place, possibly an assisted care home, and at that time I'll only be able to carry a select few of my items with me.

Where the rest will go remains to be seen: I'd like to pass them on to a museum or archive, as I continue to feel certain that anime will continue to grow in status as a major art form, and there is an increasing scholarship devoted to the phenomenon. On the other hand, some archives pointedly say that they will not take animation cels, without explanation but probably due to the conservation duties that come with them.

The sketches probably will be more welcome, and they will probably go to an archive, probably one connected with one of the increasing numbers of art schools that include animation as a major. My daughter will take on some items in my collection, but I can't expect her to maintain the whole thing and keep up a career (and possibly a family by then).

Meantime, yes, I continue collecting, and no, I have not tired of it. This week I got my first request from a European museum interested in borrowing some of my items for an upcoming exhibit of Japanese popular art, ranging from the 19th-century ukiyo-e tradition of woodcuts to contemporary manga/anime art. And so long as this material continues to attract new audiences, I'll see a reason to maintain and (in modest ways) augment my collection.

Thanks, CB, for resurrecting this thread, a thoughtful topic.
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by Gonzai »

Though I have changed most of my collecting habits by now, I
remain true to my one series that I have collected. I have
sold very few pieces from it, however, it is no longer available
as it once was. I did go from collecting cels to pretty strictly
paper instead. At this point, my buying is pretty non-existent,
but the only time I sell, is if I am in desperate need of money for
something other than to buy more artwork. My granddaughters
have a nice little collection started, so everything I own will
probably go to them.
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by Jadeduo »

LOL doesn't look like I replied to the last topic...

I don't know, when if ever I will stop collecting, what usually ends up happening with me, is that I go hardcore for a few years and then take a sabbatical for a few years... No cels, no auction hunting, and sometimes even no conventions. Although this year I am trying to go to more conventions this year... and possibly spend less on artwork... maybe... lol... we shall see... This year has not been off to the most frugal start!

What has been enlightening to me is how my personal collecting habits have changed over the course of time and what I have chosen to add to my collection series wise as less artwork is available and the market slowly dries up from older series. (This might make for an interesting topic....) Must think on it!

I digress, barring a disaster happening, I don't see an end date to my collecting. I do know that I take sabbaticals and there might be one in the future but right now I am running at a pretty good clip with no slowdown in site... I'm not sure what I would do with dispersal of my collection, most would probably go to my sister to disperse as she sees fit... I would love for it to go to a museum but there is little interest in Anime production art locally, the local museums here are pretty hoity toity. Would need to find some sort of contemporary art museum of some sort, or maybe even consign some to Mandarake... it's a thought.... I should probably think on it more, because you never know!
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by Punkxprince »

This is a cool thread! So, I have been collecting for a far shorter time than everyone that has responded to this so far (~2 1/2 years now). I do not currently see a point at which I will tire of my collection. I have changed my priorities fairly recently though. I used to just jump at anything and everything from any anime series that I enjoyed but as I occasionally take my cels out to peruse for a bit every now and then I found myself just skipping huge chunks of my collection and I eventually realized I wasn't entirely invested in everything I owned. So, I sat down and took a real hard look and decided I could part with some of it. Mostly it was the vast majority of my Hunter X Hunter collection along with a few other cels that were sequence mates or extras that came in cel lots won on eBay. I have been using the money from the sales of those to buy cels that I that are from series that I know I will love for years to come (mostly from Trigun and Yu Yu Hakusho).

So long story short, I don't see myself tiring of my collection but I can see my collecting priorities changing from time to time.
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by jcaliff »

Looks like I didn't respond to that topic, but that was also around the last time I actively updated my webpage.... X| Been actively collecting since then, just not keeping up with the online bit. I started collecting anime cels right around 1996, when I first started making actual money in a real job. The original thread would have been around my 10 year mark. Now we're at about my 20 year mark. I'm still actively collecting, and still haven't really sold anything. I don't find as many things to buy any more, but I think that has less to do with desire and more to do with lack of availability of items I want to purchase. ;) There just aren't as many cels showing up any more, and I don't find the same excitement in genga overall. However, I've still made some nice purchases even in the past year and have a couple of bids pending right now. As I am now, I don't think I'll ever get tired of my collection. I think if I'm still pretty much the same after 20 years, I probably won't change any time in the near or distant future either. I tend to be pretty set in my ways. :D
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by Keropi »

Hmm,,,well I did stop collecting, but I stopped collecting because I needed to save up my money. That was one of the reasons I gave ten years ago for why I might stop collecting so at least I was consistent. :)

I have such a hard time going through the selling process of my collectibles. I don't want to add to what I already have. I should have sold some pieces off a long time ago, but oh well. One of these days I will be forced to sell. :P
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by theultimatebrucelee »

When I first started this hobby more than 6 years ago, I thought I will stop collecting in 5 years. And if its a really entertaining hobby then 10 years. So I really enjoyed this hobby even though the majority of the period I've been in this hobby had a mix of problems with artwork low availability and the lowest exchange rate, since ever. I've slowed down on acquiring pieces coming into this year and have been checking on cel/sketch auctions once a week instead of every other day. The problem is that I've acquired enough artwork and don't feel the need to add more. On the other hand I also feel that if I don't add new items at least from time to time, then this hobby will drift away from me, since the satisfaction for acquired pieces tend to decrease over time. I' also have gotten quite a bit of artworks piled up but haven't had motivation to scan and rebag. So it'd be interesting to see if I'll still be in this hobby getting into my 30s. I think either my direction will change or maybe I'll completely stop.
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by Keropi »

Oh good, you're still here. I thought you might have left us. :D
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by star-phoenix »

I have been collecting since 1998 (gasp! I am that old! HAHAHA!). One thing I have learned is, my tastes change, but not my love for animation art. Right now, I have concentrated predominantly on Vintage American pieces since 2006, and even though I get one "Holy Grail", I will still be able to come up with another! :-)
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by theultimatebrucelee »

Keropi wrote:Oh good, you're still here. I thought you might have left us. :D
Yeah, have been practicing my secret hidden jutsu...but have not been very successful as you can see :P Actually I think I'll stick around for as long as I still have any interest in this hobby at all. Just been too busy with xenoblade X since its release date which pretty much drained all my leisure time and some more(over 800hrs now since early December).
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by ToriPagac »

no its been 20 years if anything i wish i wastt so poor so i could afford a few nicer pieces :D
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by KinoLRB »

Tough to say. Even if I stop collecting, I don't think I'll ever tire of the pieces that I already own. They've brought me too much joy.
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by JWR »

No I doubt that I will ever tire of my collection but it seems recently that I have tired or more likely grown frustrated in the lack of results from the hunt for quality pieces. It seems that for most of the series I collect the pickings have dried up to point that it seems that the same cels/sketches have been up on YJ forever.

I have branched out to new series from time to time but lately my focus has drifted back to the comic art spectrum with a focus in building relationships with some talented artist doing web comics and hopefully being able to purchase some of their original pieces in the future.
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Re: Do you think you will ever tire of your collection?

Post by Moop »

I can say without a doubt that I go through periods where I tire of collecting. I think it's probably because I miss the old days when every morning spent looking around YHJ and the cel dealers' sites brought a treasure trove of amazing new stuff to choose from...and now I feel like I have to wait months for something to catch my eye. Still, even when I went years without a purchase, I did not consider getting rid of my collection. I took offers and sold a few cels on eBay that I had no emotional attachment to, but at the same time, I also turned down offers on some of my more beloved pieces. So no, I find it hard to believe that I'll wake up one day and realize that they hold no more magic for me.

And all of that aside...my teenage daughter loves my cels, and has enjoyed looking at them and learning about their care and storage since she was a toddler. I'm happy knowing that I will be able to pass the torch to her one day!
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