Terry Oakes 

Original Illustration Art

"The Ghost Pirates"

This week: I'm offering two original cover paintings for books by William Hope Hodgson, by Welsh artist Terry Oakes.  This first one is for Hodgson's "The Ghost Pirates" for the Sphere Books edition published 1980 (book cover is shown for reference only)  If you are a Hodgson fan - and few who love weird fiction have not read his ghost stories or novels "Nightlands" or "House on the Borderland" - then you know how rare it is to find cover art for any modern publications of his work.  Here is your opportunity!   This painting is in gouache 13.75" x 8.25" on illustration board that's sized 15.5" x 9.75", and it's signed by Oakes, bottom right.  

About Welsh Artist Terry Oakes:  Well known in the 1980s for his science fiction, fantasy and "grand guignol" gothic horror illustrations, Terry kept all his originals through the years, never selling any of them - until now!  As his agent, I am able to offer, for the first time (and while they last!), all his original covers for Fighting Fantasy gamebooks, his horror covers (those Nasty NELs, Ghastly Grafton's, Sordid Sphere's!) and many SF titles by famous authors.  Terry began his career with John Spencer's Young Artists Agency, along with Jim Burns, Chris Foss, Bob Fowke, Angus McKie and many others. Once these original, now vintage, artworks are sold there will be no more! 

A word about my auctions on eBay: if you've never bid on my auctions before, please note that my policy remains (as always) that if the piece has not sold -  I will cheerfully sell it to you after the auction closes, but not at the minimum bid price.  I do this because if you could buy at these prices "any time" then it is not a sale, and there is simply no incentive for you to bid. When I offer things on eBay they REALLY ARE priced "to sell."

FAIR WARNING: I also will not end an auction to sell privately, and rarely will I re-list a work, at the same or lower price (unless the owner insists that it be sold).   I do not expect to sell every painting I list.  That's ok. The object is simply to reduce my inventory so as to make room for new additions.  In that, I have been - based on my history of sales on eBay - quite successful. So don't hold back on bidding thinking you'll see it again, for less....  

Artworks are offered at sale prices for only as long as the auction lasts, and I do accept returns - but with some caveats  -  because it's the only way I can offer items from my inventory at such substantially lower prices.   I do my best to provide accurate descriptions for what I offer, but the time to ask questions is BEFORE you bid, because I can offer "money back" refunds only if the item is not as represented.  So....feel free to ask me about frames, condition, provenance, etc. - or for additional scans of the art, BEFORE you bid.  Happy to do it!  At the same time, I want you to be happy with whatever artwork you win....so I do offer you the option of returning the art but only for a "merchandise credit" (less shipping) to be applied against another artwork of equal or greater value - to be chosen from my regular inventory at list price - in some reasonable length of time, like 30 days.  I don't expect to have such requests, and in fact never have had (even when sales were final) but yet... I think it's important to give bidders the confidence to bid on my auctions, which truly represent good values in illustrative art.  I've been in business more than 20 years, and have sold literally thousands of artworks, so be assured that your satisfaction is important to me.  

I will be invoicing all high bidders immediately after auction close, and will expect payment within THREE days of auction close - and a response to my invoice within 24 hours, so that I know you are receiving my email....but I will accept payments for up to a week past the end of the auction, so long as you respond to my invoice in appropriate fashion.  IF I haven’t heard from the high bidder, or received payment, within one week after the auction closes, I will consider the auction void and take appropriate other actions, as eBay permits.  Please note that I will not falsify customs declarations at your request, nor be responsible for any delays caused by customs inspections.  I will ship all items within two business days of receiving payment unless directed otherwise. 

My standard accepted form of payment is Paypal - however you may contact me if you wish to arrange an alternative payment method.

Shipping: I typically ship via USPS priority mail, but for higher value works feel free to inquire about the costs of shipping fedex or whatever other service you prefer.  If the piece is framed with glass, I may suggest removal before shipping, depending on the dimensions of the piece.  Whether or not the listing advertises it, I am happy to combine shipping on multiple purchases made within two consecutive auction cycles (i.e., Sunday to Sunday, spanning two auctions, two weeks) - so long as the items lend themselves to that.  If you think you want to continue bidding, let me know, and we'll tally up the shipping at the end.  It's hard to estimate the weight of larger, framed pieces.... trust me to adjust your invoice to reflect the cost when packed, if there's time...if not, and if I'm off by more than $5.00 I'll send you a refund.   Overseas, shipping will be USPS first class air or international priority mail, depending on dimensions and weight, and please note that insurance is usually not available for those classes of service for overseas shipments.  If that is important to you, please inquire before bidding for a quote based on other classes of service, or carriers.  Note, I will not ship art to APO addresses or some overseas locations; if you want to talk me out of that, get in touch.   Nominal handling fees are added when needed, to cover 3rd party insurance costs and/or delivery confirmation, based on estimates of final value, for domestic shipments.