Last updated on May 2, 2025
Coldsteel Heart – Illustration by I☆LA
Collectors, connoisseurs, and fans of Magic art in general can enjoy a great gathering in Tokyo this week, where around 100 MTG art proofs featuring artists like Aya Kakeda and Nijimaarc are being exhibited at TokyoMTG.
The exhibition will include the auction of the final sketch of Lightning Bolt by Toru Terada, and Light-Paws artist proof with color painting by Nijimaarc.
TokyoMTG, which claims to be the world's first permanent MTG Art Gallery in Tokyo, will hold this exhibition in their Akihabara shop from May 1 to May 7. Although no merchandise or artist proof will be sold during the event, there will be a lottery sale (which ships internationally!) for the displayed proofs.
Blank Side Up
Source: TokyoMTG
According to Magic artist Terese Nielsen (of original Rhystic Study fame), “White-backed artist proof cards are printed by Wizards of the Coast and are exclusively issued to the artist. The front of the card is identical to a regular Magic card and the back of the card is white/unprinted.”
Since they have a blank backside, they are not tournament legal and they are unplayable in sanctioned events. But the blank side is literally an empty canvas for the artist to sign it, scribble a note… or go crazy with a unique-brand new piece of art. In the picture above, MTG artist Kiya rendered five different versions of Ms. Bumbleflower on the (formerly) blank side of Kiya's proof for the Ms. Bumbleflower version they illustrated for Bloomburrow Commander.
Or as another example, here's Lē Yamamura illustration in their art proof Zinnia, Valley's Voice, also from Bloomburrow.
Artist proofs are a long-held practice in Magic, that has been around for almost 30 years. Artists typically receive 50 non-foil proofs of the cards they illustrate, 30 foils, and since 2020 even tokens have art proofs.
If you're thinking that art proofs are basically officially-released proxies that Wizards of the Coast gives to MTG artists so they can earn an extra buck… yep, you're right on the money!
By and large, most art proofs are sold by each artist on their personal websites, with different prices options: base price for the art proof “as is,” a small premium for a signed proof, a bigger premium if you want an illustration on the blank side, etc.
But from time to time, there's a much larger gathering – like right now in Tokyo!
A Glimpse of TokyoMTG's Pieces
TokyoMTG has organized several art shows and exhibitions, but this Artist Proof Gallery is their largest event yet. You can check all the art proofs in the exhibition's official site, but here's a small sample of what will be on exhibition:
Artist Yukihiro Maruo, with proofs from Niv-Mizzet, Parun from Ravnica Remasterered, Shroofus Sproutsire…
Source: TokyoMTG
… Pack Rat, also from Ravnica Remastered, alongside Nezumi Prowler; Gorex, the Tombshell; and Kyodai, Soul of Kamigawa.
Source: TokyoMTG
Each Commander deck can have no more than one Sol Ring, but that doesn't stop Commander players from collecting tons of different Sol Ring versions – a collection MTG artist Aya Kakeda is happy to contribute to:
Source: TokyoMTG
As others examples, here are the exhibited proofs from Inuchiyo Meimaru's Reinforced Ronin and Asari Captain…
Source: TokyoMTG
… and illustrated proofs from Mark Tedin's Emrakul, the World Anew.
Source: TokyoMTG
The TokyoMTG exhibition even features sketches drawn on the TokyoMTG original Snake tokens!
Source: TokyoMTG
What's Your Proof?
Bound, by Andrew Mar, from Nucleus “Magic: The Gathering in Miniature” art proof exhibition
As with everything dealing with MTG collectors, the top end deals with dizzyingly high amounts of money. A Christopher Rush-signed artist proof of a Black Lotus was auctioned for $600,000 (yes, that's a six followed by five zeroes!) in 2023, and earlier this year a collector put their art proof collection on eBay for 2.2 million dollars.
That's the ultra-high top-end, though. “Blank” art proofs tend to sell for something around $20-$50, and illustrated proofs usually go for the low-mid three figures, depending on the artist. Nino Vecia‘s foil art proof for Mystery Booster 2‘s Oracle of the Alpha was auctioned for $1550 a few weeks ago.
Most of these sales are done directly by the artist, but exhibitions like TokyoMTG are becoming more common. Nucleus Gallery's “Magic: The Gathering in Miniature“, in 2023, had about 40 artists and 100 proofs in exhibition. And the following year, Nucleus' “Magic: The Gathering in Miniature II” was almost twice as large, with 70 artists showcasing their proofs.
With around 100 proofs on display, TokyoMTG looks at least as big as Nucleus' first edition.
If you happen to be in Tokyo this week, you may want to pay them a visit!
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