Posters of rock celebrities abound, from big-name artists like Guns N' Roses, the Backstreet Boys, New Kids on the Block, and Brittany Spears to lesser-known artists, like the Red House Painters and Catpower. These pieces of music ephemera have defined American culture for decades. Musician posters that feature celebrity rock-and-rollers tend to accumulate value as they age. Unfortunately, most bedroom posters of famous musicians end up getting destroyed by glue, tape, and thumbtacks. Popular musicians can release dozens of posters of live concerts and album related images. If you collect a full set of an artist's poster work, you may be able to resell your set at auction for a large amount of money, provided that your posters are in good condition. Beware, however--counterfeiting attempts of musician posters have been proliferating. Thanks to advanced digital technology, counterfeiters now have more tools than ever to fool novice collectors. Look for blurry writing or un-orthodox poster sizes. Posters tend to wear in very specific ways--check out the edges and corners. If a poster shows an odd, counterintuitive series of scratches or fails to show such scratches, listen to your "Spidey Sense" and turn down the offer. In Thomas Gladwell's landmark new book, Blink, the author discusses how intuition can quickly identify counterfeited objects, even when such objects fool the so-called experts. Hone your sense of what's authentic by studying numerous posters and genres. Speak with expert collectors, and get to know the NSS codes associated with your favorite sets. |
