THE AWARD-WINNING FILMMAKER SHARES THE STORIES BEHIND PRIZED PIECES FROM HIS LEGENDARY COLLECTION
By Rhonda Reinhart | September 16, 2025
On September 26, cinema buffs and pop-culture collectors will get the chance to step inside the mind of a monster maker when Heritage Auctions presents The Guillermo del Toro Collection: Bleak House Part 1. For the first time, the acclaimed director of films such as Hellboy, Pan’s Labyrinth, Pacific Rim, The Shape of Water, and the upcoming Frankenstein is offering pieces from his fabled Bleak House. The decades-in-the-making assemblage teems with screen-used props and costumes, production maquettes, and other treasures, but it’s del Toro’s trove of original art that often proves the most fascinating. In advance of the auction, we asked the collector to share some of his favorite pieces and tell us what makes them special. Here, in del Toro’s own words, are 15 Bleak House highlights and the stories behind the images.
Pan’s Labyrinth: The Labyrinth of the Faun Original Illustration Art by Allen Williams (Katherine Tegen Books, 2019)
“I have, for decades, held on to every shred of Pan’s Labyrinth art I have ever had. In creating the illustrated novel with Cornelia Funke, I had to select an artist that was delicate and refined, elegant but also dynamic. Allen and I began our fruitful collaboration on Pacific Rim, so, for me, he was a natural choice for this artwork.”
Cronos Guillermo del Toro Original Concept Sketch of Vampire (Grupo del Toro, 1992)
“I started drawing ideas for Cronos in the early 1980s and did so in pencil. I used some of these images to apply to Dick Smith’s FX makeup course, which changed my life and allowed me to found Necropia Inc. and thus make Cronos. This is one of those images and the only one ever to be sold at auction. Likely, it will be the very last one I part with, too.”
Jean-Giraud “Moebius” The Incal No. 4 Story Page 9 Original Art (Humanoids, 1985)
“This page showcases a complex layout by Moebius and features some of the most iconic images of the graphic novel. The deep black ink sections are rhythmically layered out almost as punctuation of the page. Moebius revolutionized the medium as we know it, and The Incal series may very well be one of his top three graphic narrative works.”
Hellboy Drew Struzan Original Poster Concept Art (Columbia, 2004)
“Drew is a genius. To me, he represents cinema – the movies of my youth. I wanted the Hellboy movies to be Harryhausen movies for the new century. I was hoping to conjure this feeling for kids that would grow up to love them. I chose Drew to capture this sense of adventure. He did.”
Mike Mignola Hellboy: Seed of Destruction No. 4 Splash Page 10 Original Art (Dark Horse, 1994)
“When I started collecting Hellboy pages, I was determined to get as many ‘firsts’ from the earliest issues as possible. These pages are the rarest to find and belong, impossibly, to the original series ‘Plague of Frogs.’ They involve both John Byrne and Mike Mignola, and this beautiful, exquisite negative-space splash page shows the three main characters, in my opinion – Liz, Hellboy, and the antagonist, Rasputin – and it shows the very first time Liz (the pyrokinetic BPRD member) explodes in the comic book series.”
Mike Mignola Clive Barker’s Hellraiser No. 2 Pinhead Pin-up Original Art (Marvel, 1990)
“It took me a long, long, long time to secure a color piece by Mike Mignola during this particular period. I was a big fan of his Hellraiser work. Every bit of mood and horror imagery that helped him fuse the dynamics of superheroic adventure with the Gothic, Hammer vibe – the search that culminates with hits like Gotham by Gaslight and the Dracula adaptation – it all led to Hellboy. Just as Hellboy led him to where he stands now: a master of color and imagination, unprecedented and unrivaled.”
Bernie Wrightson Frankenstein Chapter 12 Published Illustration Plate Original Art from Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley’s Novel Adaptation (Marvel, 1977-1983)
“After Shelley, the Creature and its creator have often been shared with true acolytes who treat them with reverence and love: Whale, Karloff, Isherwood, Brooks, and, above and beyond, Bernie Wrightson. Through the decades, I have made it my mission to collect the prime, most exquisite plates of Bernie’s Frankenstein. I have managed to do so even when there are four or five in the hands of other collectors. I part with these in an effort to share this curatorial passion with the next keepers of the flame.”
Bernie Wrightson Meat Loaf Dead Ringer Final Album Cover Original Art (Epic, 1981)
“Oftentimes, I find Bernie’s black-and-white work more striking than his color pieces. This monumental album cover caught my eye because its color balance and composition are part of its dynamic power. It’s a knockout and remarkably rare, in my opinion. Bernie developed a particular sense of musculature – one that he showcased brilliantly with Hanover Fist and some of his massive Creature of Frankenstein plates – but it is truly rare to find it in color and in a single-image display.”
Richard Corben Vic and Blood: The Chronicles of a Boy and His Dog No. 2 Wraparound Cover Original Art (Mad Dog Graphics, 1988)
“In my mind, Wrightson, Corben, Mignola, Moebius, Jack Kirby, and a very few others represent the pinnacle of comic book art in the last quarter of the 20th century. This wraparound cover showcases Richard Corben’s line work and knack for mood and emotion.”
H.R. Giger The Tourist Original Art (circa 1980)
“It is rare to find Giger’s creature creation in this large format. His airbrush work remains a singularity in the visual world, and the way he combined delicate lips or features with sinuous, translucent alien biology is one of his strongest trademarks. I selected this work because it is a pristine, centerpiece example of this.”
Chet Zar The Pink Scream Original Art (2007)
“Chet Zar’s work on special makeup FX and his collaborations with the band Tool and many other artists in the LA scene has made him a longtime favorite of mine. I think his style is instantly recognizable, and this is one of his, in my opinion, top 10 surreal masterworks. An homage to Munch, it is both eerie and compelling. It has a sinuous, almost sensual feel, and for decades it adorned one of my main walls in Bleak House.”
The Nightmare Before Christmas Jack Skellington and Zero Concept Illustration Original Art (Walt Disney, 1993)
“The collection of The Nightmare Before Christmas pastel concepts came early into my hands, early enough to be close to production of the film, when it was yet to become the legendary animated classic it became. They were always dripping with mood, and somehow they had managed to present all the key moments that made the film great.”
Eyvind Earle Sleeping Beauty Concept Painting (Walt Disney, 1959)
“The most cherished position at Walt Disney’s side was one of entire trust. After attempts by Kay Nielsen and many others, Earle achieved the look that Disney wanted – to fuse the perspective tricks and illuminated feel of medieval artwork and a striking modernity in color and shape. He entrusted the leadership of art directing Sleeping Beauty to Earle – a true honor, nowhere more evident than in these selected examples curated by me through the decades.”
Lee Brown Coye Fat Guy Eating Illustration Original Art (undated)
“Lee Brown Coye is, in my opinion, the most disturbing illustrator to come out of the Weird Tales magazine school of image-making. Along with Edd Cartier, he manages to find the odd detail to make the inoffensive dangerous or odd. He was a remarkable craftsman and taught advanced art to generations of painters and illustrators. I believe the late Richard Sala, Mike Mignola, and myself were always searching for his work to acquire.”
Michael Kaluta Legend of the Five Rings/The Four Winds Era Shosuro Higatsuku Card Original Art (Alderac Entertainment Group, 2000)
“I think Mike Kaluta is one of the seminal masters of pulp gothic. As part of The Studio group, he has secured his place in the pantheon. His pulp The Shadow work is atmospheric and precise – virtuoso. I always thought this image had a Sax Rohmer-esque energy that vibed great with that.”
Go here for more images and information on all 132 lots in The Guillermo del Toro Collection: Bleak House Part 1 Hollywood/Entertainment Signature® Auction.
