R. Crumb: Existential Comics

This volume brings together twenty-five of R. Crumb’s most ambitious, acclaimed, and profound comics, all produced at the height of the underground comix movement and which are out of print. One of the most influential and iconic cartoonists of the twentieth century, R. Crumb is celebrated for pushing the boundaries of representation, mass consumerism, and polite society. Exemplifying the peak of Crumb’s creative output, the comics in this volume blend meticulous research with insights gained from the artist’s experimentation in the 1960s and 1970s. The comics collected here depict characters searching for an understanding of the world around and within themselves. Through adaptation, autobiography, biography, and short fiction, Crumb—much like his subjects—demands we pay attention to our darkest desires, compulsions, fears, and obsessions. Dan Nadel introduces the selection in an essay that weaves together Crumb’s life, career, and influences, delving into the creative environment that informed some of the artist’s most illustrious comics.