Legendary imagist painter Robert Williams sprang from the custom car culture of Southern California and the roots of the Underground Comix movement. Though known today as one of the world's most iconoclastic fine artists, Williams is also, of course, first and foremost a cartoonist. As one of the original ZAP artists, along with R. Crumb, Williams eventually transcended the world of comics by cultivating his mastery of oil paints and forging a career as the preeminent artist among a generation of imagist painters gathering inspiration from the shadowed corners of contemporary culture. Williams singlehandedly became the model of the "Outsider" art movement, influencing a generation of artists to create without concern for the fine art world, held in contempt by Williams (a feeling which had been reciprocated in kind for years by the established fine art community, although Williams' sheer mastery of his craft has caused a grudging retreat—Williams paintings now command tens of thousands of dollars each in the gallery scene and the artist has a long waiting list of potential buyers). Included in this deluxe collection are all of Williams' contributions to such legendary underground anthologies as ZAP, Snatch, Arcade, Cocaine Comix, and more (much of which has been out of print for over 25 years). Also, the book will feature scores of never-before-published work, including the never-before-seen, full-color storyboards for a proposed, animated ZAP movie, along with numerous cartoons from Williams' early years at L.A. City College. Plus, the seminal Coochy Cooty Men's Comics, dozens of examples of hot rod art done for Ed "Big Daddy" Roth's studio, and the rare, two-color strip "Yama Yama." Hysteria In Remission is a perfect and comprehensive complement to Williams' Malicious Resplendence, finally collecting all of Williams comix art and illustration work in one place, as his previous book did for his paintings to great acclaim. The book features two introductions, one by abulous Furry Freak Brothers creator and fellow ZAP cohort Gilbert Shelton, and the other by Williams himself. contextualizing his comix work within his better-know career as a painter. Black-and-white illustrations with over 30 pages in full-color.
