Zap! Comix Prints by Robert Crumb
August 20 to December 13, 2009
Joel and Lila Harnett Museum of Art
University of Richmond Museums
Zap! Comix Prints by Robert Crumb will be on view August 20 to December 13, 2009. Robert Crumb (American, born 1943), best known as “R. Crumb,” is considered the founder of the underground comics movement. In 1968 he published the first issue of Zap Comix in San Francisco, which featured Crumb’s notable “Keep on Truckin’” imagery and characters such as Mr. Natural and Flakey Foont.
Crumb is an artist and illustrator known for his satirical view of the American mainstream. Early in his career, he designed greeting cards for the American Greetings Corporation and contributed artwork to various publications including underground newspapers such as Philadelphia’s Yarrowstalks. After moving to San Francisco in 1967, Crumb produced the first issue of Zap Comix in 1968, which is credited as beginning the underground comics movement.
Included in the exhibition are screenprints featuring some of his best known imagery and characters such as Mr. Natural and the covers of Zap Comix #0, Arcade: The Comics Revue, and Bob & Harv’s Comics. The exhibition was organized by the University of Richmond Museums and curated by Richard Waller, Executive Director, University Museums.