Robert Williams
American Master Painter
Cartoon Surrealist Pop Art Gallery
“In The Pavilion of The Red Clown” –Virtu Exclusive
Museum Quality Giclee On Heavy Acid Free Paper
Edition of 50
Same Size of The Original Painting
Image Size 30 x 36
One of Williams Largest Ltd. Images
Signed & Numbered in Image by Robert Williams
Matt to edge of image showing no white border.
Robert Williams Masterpiece
$650
$685 International
EDITION ALERT! NEARING SOLD OUT STATUS!!
A Few Notes On:
“In The Pavilion Of The Red Clown”
It has been very fashionable of late, to cast the clown in the persona
of a phantom psychopath – a thrilling notion that mixes Halloween with
psychiatry. In the mode of antisocial circus performers, little
investigation is given to the psychological makeup of clowns
themselves. But here, in this painting, it is hard to ignore the
personality quirks of this comedian.A full description of the painting would be in order. This
tableau-vivant takes place in a circus tent, obviously the quarters of
our red clown. The back drop and floor are made up of olive-tan canvas.
This material serves two functions. First, it gives the observer the
impression that everything about the environment is transient, ready to
be moved to the next location. And secondly, the surrounding canvas has
a green tint which emphasizes the image of the clown’s red costume. It
might be pointed out that this carmine red figure of derision and the
similarity to the devil is no coincidence.In the tent, as incidentals, is a trunk, along with papier mâché masks
and grotesque, illogical theatrical props. The furniture is sparse and
the floor is littered with wine bottles. The clown stands posed with a
bird cage in hand. This raises the question, “Where is the bird?” He
boldly smiles at the visiting show girl, as he alarms her with the
cage’s contents. It is occupied with a harmless yellow corn snake. This
is the visual structure of the oil painting.This melodramatic scene was paraphrased with these remarks: “Occupying
the cerebral netherworld between humor and severity, the scarlet clad
anti-Puck, clowns around as sole purveyor of an abstract levity with
ambiguous jokes that seem audienceless.”This last quotation sheds light on the clown’s bizarre psychology. If
you haven’t noticed, the clown has only one leg. He has apparently
adjusted to this infirmity and incorporated it into his act. His thin
left leg, wearing a red shoe, is actually his crutch. Lying on his
steamer trunk is his formal prosthesis used for everyday life. The
floor is strewn with booze bottles – he is apparently an unrepentant
alcoholic – but that would be a simple situation if his psychosis ended
there. It is obvious that he is an experienced master comedian. His
costume is the classical European Scaramouche style with a half-mask
nose. And of course, he wears the mask drawn back on his forehead with
the long nose protruding like a horn, knowingly making himself look
ominous.Two things are unmistakable. To begin with, he delights in the girl’s
shock, with her surprise in the bird cage. And, his condition – he’s
drunk. It is evident that this character has a second life; however,
what is not so conspicuous is that this performer probably functions
secretly as another clown, a more inculpable form of buffoon. The
girl’s presence in his tent is not only stimulating to him, but is not
an accident. Her lure to his web was, no doubt, consensual.This clown, when not entertaining a layman public, has conditioned
himself, over the period of a long career, to mentally slip into a
sardonic demi-humor – this is a joke realm more suited to extreme irony
with a lack of moral logic. Here is a statement from the painting’s
prologue verifying this: “Those private moments shared when a rubber
chicken is given a Fleet enema.”Even detractors to this artwork realize that his image seems to have
meaning beyond this graphic melodrama. Looking at the birdcage, the
question remains, “Where is the bird?” The show girl instantly knew –
it’s in the snake.
-Robert Williams
Artist Bio
Robert L. Williams II was born on March 2, 1943 in Albuquerque, New Mexico to Robert Wandell Williams and Betty Jane Spink at 5:30 AM. At a very early age he displayed an interest in art, drawing and painting with watercolors. He was enrolled in the Stark Military Academy in the first grade. Perhaps this led to his fascination and collection of World War One German Pickelhaube later in life.
Another love instilled in Williams at an early age was car culture. Robert the elder owned “The Parkmore,” a drive-in restaurant complete with carhops and frequented by hot rodders. Williams himself received his first car, a 34 Ford 5 window coupe, at 12 years of age as a gift from his father. References to this childhood environment can be seen throughout his work as well as in the custom hot rods he would later build himself.
The Williams household was one of flux as his parents would marry each other a total of four times and Robert would shuttle between New Mexico and his father’s in Montgomery, Alabama. Their final separation would come in 1956 with 12-year-old Robert staying with his mother in Albuquerque. His youth was spent delinquently and immersed in hot rods, high jinx, and gangs, which lead to his expulsion from public school in the 9th grade.
In an attempt to avoid jail and delinquent destruction, Williams headed to L.A in 1963. Floating on the allure of hot rod culture and affordable art school he landed in classes at Los Angeles City College and worked on the school paper, “The Collegiate”, contributing artwork. It was here he also met his future wife, Suzanne Chorna.
Williams moved on to a short stint at The Chouinard Art Institute where he was branded an “illustrator” in a derogatory fashion. Now married, Williams fled the Art School Tyranny and headed into the professional sector in search of work. Trying to find his niche, Williams designed containers for the Weyehaeuser Corporation and art design for Black Belt magazine before finding his dream job in 1965 in the far out figure of Ed “Big Daddy” Roth and his Rat Fink.
In the late 1960s, while doing advertisements and graphics for Roth, Williams was also a productive oil painter. It was during this period that he was creating his “Super Cartoon” paintings. Including “Appetite For Destruction” and “In The Land Of Retinal Delights” these paintings were meticulously created in the style of the Old Masters including hand-made paints and multiple layers of varnish. These works sold well but were very time consuming to produce, sometimes taking over a year to complete. Many of these paintings were owned by Williams’ patron, James Bruckner Jr., and were on permanent display at the Movie World Cars of the Stars Museum.
As Roth’s studio came to a close Williams joined the ZAP Comix collective of artists and flourished in the non-conformist, anti-establishment movement with fellow malcontents R. Crumb, S. Clay Wilson, Spain Rodriguez, Rick Griffin, Gilbert Shelton, and Victor Moscoso. In 1969 he created his seminal Underground Comix anti-hero, Coochy Cooty. His creation was unleashed in 1970 in Coochy Cooty Men’s Comics and ZAP Comix #5 and is still alive today in Williams’ oil paintings.
Many of these comix and “Super Cartoon” paintings were included in Williams’s first ground breaking book, “The Lowbrow Art of Robt. Williams” released in 1979. The title of the book was meant as a statement on the current “Highbrow” tone of the art world and how Williams’ work did not fit in with its ideologies.
In the 1980s Williams caught the frenzied vibe of the punk rock movement and found his next audience. The “Zombie Mystery Paintings” were born in the glow of after-hours clubs and slam pits. The book of the same name influenced and inspired a multitude of artists with the energetic, vibrant, sexy, and ultra-violent images it contained which were in complete contrast to the uptight and exclusive art scene of the day. These works were done quickly, on a rough canvas, and sold via a waiting list system due to demand. In addition to the books, popularity for Williams’ work was established in avant-garde galleries like Billy Shire’s La Luz de Jesus Gallery, Zero One Gallery, and the Tamara Bane Gallery.
