During the first two weeks of August 2021, three traditional paintings by Grzegorz “Greg” Rutkowski were sold on the MTG Art Market on Facebook for a combined $42,950. Rutkowski began with the game in 2017, and these were his first traditional artworks for Magic: the Gathering.
The paintings were sold on the MTG Art Market, with Matthew “MountainMage” Schneider acting as agent for the artist. Schneider runs Mountain Mage MTG Signature Service and has worked with Rutkowski previously in selling his artist proofs, both blank and with sketches and miniature paintings, for the first time last year.
The first work to be sold was his Chaos Dragon from the Dungeons & Dragons crossover set, Adventures in the Forgotten Realms.
Chaos Dragon by Greg Rutkowski, acrylic on canvas, 19.7″ x 27.6″.
The bidding began at only $2,500 and climbed quickly during the three day auction. The end time was set for Sunday morning at 10:30am EST. Despite the unusual end time, considerable action happened in the closing hour and pushed this work to an astounding $30,000 final price. It was sold to a private bidder.
The following day a second auction began, this time for the recently released Jumpstart: Historic Horizons card Sarkhan, Wanderer to Shiv.
Sarkhan, Wanderer to Shiv by Greg Rutkowski, oil on canvas, 31.5″ x 23.6″
This massive oil painting sought an opening bid of $3,000, and again garnered immediate bidding at the beginning of the three day auction. Also slated to end midday, but at 12:30pm EST on a Thursday, there was less late auction action than expected, or at least compared to similar works. The work was sold to a private bidder at $5,750.
The final auction was the set-mate to this Planeswalker, another dragon known as Scion of Shiv.
Scion of Shiv by Greg Rutkowski, oil on canvas, 23.6″ x 31.5″
The opening bid was set at $2,500 and the duration to also be a three day auction, but ending at 10pm EST based on feedback from the previous sales. A valiant effort at the end and strong fight between two bidders would give considerable push to this artwork. When the dust settled, it landed at $7,200. It was sold to a collector bidding in the comments.
Rutkowski has painted almost 100 cards for Magic, including these most recent three traditional paintings. I hope we’ll see a continued effort in more traditional work from him in the future based on these results.
Stay tuned to the Art Market Minute on Hipsters of the Coast for continued breaking Magic: the Gathering art news.