R. Crumb turns God into a comic-book hero

LOS ANGELES — His religious upbringing might well be as unorthodox as the psychedelic-inspired comic strip characters that have made R. Crumb the most famous underground artist of his time.

Which, come to think of it, may have made Mr. Crumb the perfect artist for his latest project, an illustrated, comic book version of “The Book of Genesis,” the 50-chapter work that begins the Bible.

Raised in a secular household that was headed by a rigidly strict, ex-Marine father who was actually a closeted atheist, Mr. Crumb was sent off to Catholic school at age 6 because his father had always admired the discipline Catholic nuns were famous for instilling in their students.

“We never got a lot of religion at home,” Mr. Crumb says of himself and his siblings. “But we certainly got the whole indoctrination and brainwashing in school.”

Sixty years later, the creator of comic book characters like the R-rated Fritz the Cat and the bizarre Mr. Natural has finally put that religious training to good use.

“The Book of Genesis Illustrated by R. Crumb” was published last month, and on Saturday the stunningly detailed, beautifully crafted black-and-white drawings included in its 201 pages will go on display at Los Angeles’ Hammer Museum. The exhibition closes in February. Then it will move on to other cities, including New York and Portland, Ore., a circumstance that has the normally circumspect Mr. Crumb shaking his head in disbelief.

“The Bible! Jesus! Incredible,” Mr. Crumb says in a voice filled with awe as he reflects on the project that has consumed the past five years of his life.

Indeed, the project does raise an obvious question: Why would the guy famous for drawing voluptuous women and nerdy looking, well-endowed men, who put the phrase “Keep on Truckin’ ” into the national vocabulary with his posters of a big-footed oddball out for a walk, and who by his own admission owes much of his artistic inspiration to his extensive use of LSD in the 1960s, take on the Bible?

“It’s kind of complicated,” Mr. Crumb guffaws during a phone interview from his home in the south of France.

“I don’t think ‘Genesis’ is a good place to look for spiritual guidance or moral guidance,” he continues. “I don’t believe it’s the word of God.

“At the same time,” he continues, “I think the stories are very powerful. I’m not out to ridicule them or belittle them.”

Although done in the same, unmistakable style that Mr. Crumb has brought to such comic books as “Zap,” “Weirdo” and “Dirty Laundry,” “Genesis” is also surprisingly respectful, as well as faithfully loyal to the Bible’s original text.

“He could have done something really satiric but he didn’t,” says Ali Subotnick, who is curating the exhibit. “He’s not bastardizing the stories at all.”

Which is not to say Mr. Crumb hasn’t added his own unique touch here and there.

While biblical characters including Noah and the pharaoh don’t look that much different from how they have been portrayed by other artists, God and the serpent are another story.

Story Continues →