Artosphere

LONDON.- Robert Crumb, otherwise known as R. Crumb, is one of the leading figures of the 1966/ 67 hippy underground comic movement. Philadelphia-born Crumb exploded onto the scene in the late 60’s, heralding a renaissance of underground sex and drug comics. His LSD-inspired characters Fritz the Cat and Mr. Natural quickly established him as a counter-culture icon. 

Encouraged to create comic books as a child by his artistic brother Charles, Robert soon surpassed his sibling, and what was a form of escapism from a childhood spent in a dysfunctional family ruled by an abusive Father and neurotic Mother, translated into a lifelong career that has culminated, at the age of 66, in critical recognition for his work not just as a comic book creator, but an acutely observational fine artist in the vein of Guston or Goya. Crumb’s material is often inspired by the absurdity of humanity. His drawings are exhibited in blue-chip galleries and museums all over the world. He has published in countless comics, books, and magazines, and has in recent years been recognized by the broader art world with numerous exhibitions, including; R. Crumb’s Underground at the ICA in Philadelphia in 2008; a retrospective at the Ludwig Museum, Cologne in 2004; and a focus in the 2004 Carnegie International, Pittsburgh.
The exhibition at Scream Gallery will be part of Comica, the London International Comics Festival, which takes place at the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) from 5-26 November.
Curator Brandon Coburn has selected the finest drawings from a rare collection of more than 300 pages of Robert Crumb drawings dating from the 1960’s to 2001. The Symbolic Collection has been amassing the collection of drawings and original comic books since 2006. The exhibition will mainly feature Pen and ink drawings, but will also include sketchbook pages, greeting cards, ink on acetate, and one very rare oil painting, in the vein of a cubist Picasso portrait. Some of the artworks have been exhibited at PULSE Miami and PULSE NY, and this is the first time they’ve been shown in the UK.