History & Practice Session 10: 60s Counter Culture

Robert Dennis Crumb

illustrations by Robert Crumb

​Robert Dennis Crumb (commonly signing his works as 'R. Crumb') is an American counterculture cartoonist. Born into an age where traditional cultural norms were being actively challenged, Crumb became a huge name in the world of counterculture art.

Crumb's sketchbook (above) compared to the work of Kurtzman (below left) and Kelly (below right) - note the similarities in fine, black and white linework and crosshatch shading

In terms of technical form, Crumb's style is very reminiscent of late 19th-/early 20th-century cartoons, which he drew from heavily. Inspired by the likes of animator Max Fleischer and cartoonist Carl Banks, his illustrations feature heavily crosshatched pen and ink, mostly done in black and white. However, following a particularly intense LSD trip, his style developed into a slightly more surreal, psychedelic one. This can be seen clearly in the work he produced during his time working with Underground Comix, inspired by his own trips and psychedelic poster art.

psychedelic inspired cartoons by Robert Crumb

​In terms of subject and outlook, Crumb's work conveys a certain contempt for contemporary American life. He employs scathing satire, an erotic fixation and a bold irreverence which ultimately made his name famous. He was particularly inspired by the use of satire in cartoonist Harvey Kurtzman's work, who was his mentor for a number of years. Interestingly, contrary to the inappropriate nature of his own work, Crumb also drew influence from Walt Disney animator ​Walt Kelly. 

Crumb's cartoon 'Fritz the Cat' (right) compared to the work of Max Fleischer, creator of 'Felix the Cat' (left) - note the similarities in exaggerated cartoon features such as the eyes, anthropomorphism, and blatant character-lifting

​Though perhaps not an "artistic" influence, I feel it is well worth mentioning the effects Crumb's personal life had on his work. Born into a heavily Catholic family, Crumb has stated he was "born weird". Intrigued, I researched further and found a number of striking facts about his early life which, from a psychological perspective, I believe correlate directly to his erotic fetishes.

His father was a military illustrator, suggesting a strict (and religious) upbringing, and his mother reportedly abused diet pills and other medications. He had four siblings - two sisters, and two brothers (both of whom suffered from mental illnesses also related to sexual fixation and urges). He attended a Catholic school, taught by nuns and teachers who discouraged his interest in cartoons. All this combines into what I personally interpret as a horrendously stressful and oppressive environment for a growing child - one which could fuel hatred and mental stability as an adult.

Crumb has confirmed some of this in interviews. He has spoken of his painful struggle to fit in during his adolescence, stating that it allowed him to develop his own aesthetic ideals contrary to Hollywood's concept of attractiveness. With much of his work featuring graphic, sexual imagery of women, he admits that the fixation is partly fuelled by a hatred for the female sex. He states that the nuns terrified him, he was rejected by girls throughout his youth... That alongside the knowledge of the image he probably had of his addict mother as a child, you can kind of see a root to his anger towards women in general.