Howard Lowery began buying and selling original animation and comic art in 1970 as an employee of Collectors Book Store. He gained experience and knowledge in these and related areas as interest increased among collectors and the general public, and in 1984 he purchased that section of the business. His experience operating an auction began in 1978 with the introduction of Collectors Showcase, a monthly mail-and-telephone auction that he managed for Collectors Book Store. In September 1989 Lowery moved his business to Burbank, California where he opened a retail gallery and organized nearly fifty full-scale auctions of animation art, comic art, and movie collectibles. In 1998-2000 he hosted three auctions of Vintage Hollywood Posters for Bruce Hershenson.
Animation Art encompasses a wide array of original paintings and drawings created in the development and production of an animated film. These include paintings on celluloid sheets (cels) and background paintings, both of which are seen on the screen when watching a film. A host of additional original art works are produced by Studio artists in the making of the film, including animation drawings (from which cels were inked and painted); story drawings, inspirational paintings; character and model drawings; etc.
Comic Book and Newspaper Comic Strip Art includes the final drawings by an artist in ink on paper for reproduction in a comic book or newspaper (daily comic strip and Sunday pages) as well as preliminary sketches and scripts created in the development phases.
Signed Disney Art Books. Beginning with the publication of The Disney Villains by Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston in 1987, Howard Lowery began a series of projects in which he invited former and current Walt Disney Studio artists to sign books about the making of the animated films on which they worked.
Most of the art offered is from the original production of an animated film, comic strip or book, or theme park; similarly, most historical artifacts and collectibles are of original manufacture. Few limited edition or reproduction items are offered, and they are always clearly described as such.
A signed Certificate of Authenticity is included with most original works, one-of-a-kind items, signed and handwritten items, and those designated as from a particular source (i.e., from the estate of…).
