View source for Rick Griffin

{{short description|American artist}}
{{Infobox comics creator
| image         = Rickgriffinfamilydog.jpg
| imagesize     = 
| caption       = 
| birth_name    = Richard Alden Griffin
| birth_date    = {{Birth date|1944|6|18}}<ref>"United States Social Security Death Index," index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/JGQ5-Y3N : accessed 26 Feb 2013), R A Griffin, 15 August 1991; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).</ref>
| birth_place      = [[Palos Verdes, California]], U.S.
| death_date    = {{Death date and age|1991|8|18|1944|6|18}}
| death_place   = [[Petaluma]], California, U.S.
| nationality   = [[United States|American]]
| cartoonist    = y
| area = ''Underground Comix'', ''Psychedelic Posters'', ''Album Covers'', ''Paintings''
| notable works = ''Flying Eyeball'', ''Aoxomoxoa'', ''Pow Wow: A Gathering of the Tribes'', ''Tales From The Tube'', ''Man From Utopia'', ''Zap Comix''
| patrons       = 
| awards        = [[Inkpot Award]] (1976)<ref>[https://www.comic-con.org/awards/inkpot Inkpot Award]</ref>
}}

'''Richard Alden Griffin''' (June 18, 1944&nbsp;– August 18, 1991) was an American [[artist]] and one of the leading designers of [[psychedelic art|psychedelic posters]] in the 1960s. He was a key figure in the [[underground comix]] movement as a founding member of the ''[[Zap Comix]]'' collective. Griffin was closely identified with the [[Grateful Dead]], designing some of their best-known posters and album covers including ''[[Aoxomoxoa]]''. His work within the surfing subculture included both film posters and his comic strip, ''Murphy''.<ref name=myraltis>{{cite web |url= http://www.myraltis.co.uk/rickgriffin/bio.htm |title= Biography |access-date= 2007-09-20 |author= Stephenson, Tim |date= 2007-04-10 |work= Myraltis }}</ref>

==Early life==
Griffin was born near [[Palos Verdes]] amidst the [[Surf culture|surfing culture]] of southern California. Griffin biographer Tim Stephenson notes:
:"His father was an engineer and amateur archaeologist and as a boy Rick accompanied him on digs in the Southwest. It was during this time that Rick was exposed to the Native American and ghost town artifacts that were to influence his later work. Rick was taught to surf by [[Randy Nauert]] at the age of 14 at [[Torrance, California|Torrance Beach]]. The pair had met at Alexander {{sic|Flemming}} Jr. High, and were to become lifelong friends, Rick producing much of the artwork for Randy's future band, the [[The Challengers (band)|Challengers]]."<ref name=myraltis/>

While attending [[Narbonne High School|Nathaniel Narbonne High School]] in the [[Harbor City, Los Angeles|Harbor City]] area of [[Los Angeles]], he produced numerous surfer drawings, which led to his surfing comic strip, "Murphy" for ''[[Surfer (magazine)|Surfer]]'' magazine in 1961, with Griffin's character featured on the front cover the following year. In 1964, he left ''Surfer'' and briefly attended [[Chouinard Art Institute]] (now [[California Institute of the Arts|CalArts]]), where he met his future wife, artist Ida Pfefferle as well as the Jook Savages, a group of artist-musicians with whom he took part in [[Ken Kesey]]'s Watts [[Acid Tests]] on February 12, 1966.<ref name="americanart.si.edu">{{cite web | url=https://americanart.si.edu/artist/rick-griffin-18298 | title=Rick Griffin &#124; Smithsonian American Art Museum }}</ref> Griffin was intrigued by the psychedelic rock posters being designed by [[Stanley Mouse]] and [[Alton Kelley]] so after taking time out for a Mexican surfing trip, Rick and Ida headed to San Francisco to check out the scene.<ref name=myraltis/>

==Career==
===Posters===
Griffin and the Jook Savages arranged an art show, celebrating the one-year anniversary of the Psychedelic Shop on [[Haight Street]] for which Griffin designed his first psychedelic poster.<ref name="americanart.si.edu"/> Organizers for the [[Human Be-In]] saw his work and asked him to design a poster for their January 1967 event. [[Chet Helms]] was also impressed by Griffin's work and asked him to design posters for the [[Family Dog Productions|Family Dog]] dance concerts at the [[Avalon Ballroom]], and later for [[The Family Dog Denver]] ballroom in Denver, CO.. In 1967, Griffin, Kelley, Mouse, [[Victor Moscoso]] and [[Wes Wilson]] teamed with photographer [[Bob Seidemann]] as the founders of Berkeley Bonaparte, a company that created and marketed psychedelic posters. In February 1968 Griffin began to design posters for [[Bill Graham (promoter)|Bill Graham]] shows, first at [[The Fillmore]] Auditorium and later at the [[Fillmore West]]. The first of these posters was to become one of his best known works,<ref>{{cite web | url=https://clubofthewaves.com/feature/rick-griffin/ | title=Rick Griffin — Club of the Waves }}</ref> the "Flying Eyeball" poster for [[Jimi Hendrix]].

=== Comics ===
Griffin was a key figure and founding member of the ''[[Zap Comix]]'' collective. ''Man from Utopia'' (1972), ''Tales from the Tube'' (1972), and his Zap pages are considered to be his most notable comic works.<ref name="comixjoint_utopia">Fox, M. Steven. [https://comixjoint.com/manfromutopia.html "Man from Utopia"], ComixJoint. Accessed May 7, 2024.</ref>

====Comic Bibliography====
Source:<ref name="comixjoint">Fox, M. Steven. [http://comixjoint.com/underground.html "Underground Comix"], ComixJoint. Accessed May 7, 2024.</ref>
* ''Zap Comix'' #2-9, 11, 12, 14 (The Print Mint, 1968–1998)
* ''[[Yellow Dog (comics)|Yellow Dog]]'' #2 ([[Print Mint|The Print Mint]], 1968 June)
* ''Yellow Dog'' #8 (The Print Mint, 1969 February)
* ''Bogeyman'' #2 ([[San Francisco Comic Book Company]], 1969)
* ''Bogeyman'' #3 (Company & Sons, 1970
* ''Changes'' #3 (Harbinger University Press, 1969)
* ''Jiz Comics'' (Apex Novelties, 1969)
* ''King Bee'' (Apex Novelties, 1969)
* ''Promethean Enterprises'' #1-5 ([[Bud Plant]], 1969–1974)
* ''Radical America Komiks'' (Paul Buhle, 1969)
* ''Snatch Comics'' #2 (Apex Novelties, 1969)
* ''All Stars'' #2 (San Francisco Comic Book Co., 1970)
* ''The Dying Dolphin'' (The Print Mint, 1970)
* ''[[San Francisco Comic Book]]'' #1 (San Francisco Comic Book Company, 1970)
* ''San Francisco Comic Book'' #2 (The Print Mint, 1970)
* ''Man from Utopia'' (San Francisco Comic Book Company, 1972)
* ''Tales from the Tube'' (Surfer Publications, 1972)
* ''Berkeley Con Program Book'' (Rip Off Press, 1973)
* ''Eternal Comics'' (Last Gasp, 1973)
* ''Occult Laff-Parade'' (The Print Mint, 1973)
* ''Tales from the Berkeley-Con'' (Rip Off Press / Last Gasp, 1974)
* ''Zam (Zap [[Comic jam|Jam]])'' (The Print Mint, 1974)
* ''Foopgoop Frolics Frantic Funnies Folio'' (Glenn Bray, 1975)
* ''Stoned Picture Parade'' #1 (San Francisco Comic Book Company, 1975)
* ''Heebie Jeebie Funnies'' #1 (Joel Milke, 1976)
* ''The Portfolio of Underground Art'' (Schanes & Schanes, 1980)

===''The Gospel of John''===
Griffin became a [[born again Christian]] in November 1970,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.christiancomicsinternational.org/griffin_pioneer.html|title=Rick Griffin – Christian Comics Pioneer|work=christiancomicsinternational.org|access-date=24 October 2016}}</ref> which led to fundamental changes in his lifestyle and in the style and content of his art. His 1973 painting ''Sail on Sailor'' for the band [[Mustard Seed Faith]] is an example of his fine art painting from this period. His most significant 1970s project was the creation of hundreds of paintings and drawings for ''The Gospel of John'', published by the Christian record label [[Maranatha! Music]]. He also produced much album art for Maranatha! during the 1970s and 1980s.<ref>McClelland, Gordon. ''The Art of Rick Griffin''. Perigee Paper Tiger, 1980.</ref>

==Death and legacy==
Rick Griffin died shortly after a motorcycle accident<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-08-20-mn-1302-story.html|title=Rick Griffin; Psychedelic Artist Adorned Rock Music Posters|first=BURT A.|last=FOLKART|date=20 August 1991|access-date=24 October 2016|via=LA Times}}</ref> on August 15, 1991, in [[Petaluma, California]]. He was thrown from his Harley-Davidson motorcycle when he collided with a van that suddenly turned left as he attempted to pass it. He was not wearing a helmet and sustained major head injuries. He died three days later, on August 18, in nearby Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, at the age of 47.<ref>Associated Press news release, August 20, 1991</ref><ref>Chronology by Gordon McClelland in ''Heart and Torch'', Laguna Art Museum, 2007.</ref>

His work has been cited as an inspiration by well-known artist [[Roger Dean (artist)|Roger Dean]], known for his designs for bands such as [[Yes (band)|Yes]] and [[Asia (band)|Asia]], and by [[Mark Wilkinson]], known for his designs for bands such as [[Marillion]], [[Judas Priest]] and [[Iron Maiden]].<ref name="drowned in sound">{{cite web | url=http://drownedinsound.com/in_depth/4143210-home-of-metal-part-one--the-art-of-mark-wilkinson | title=Home of Metal – Part One: The Art of Mark Wilkinson | work=Drowned in Sound | first=Tom | last=Perry | date=8 August 2011 | access-date=27 July 2015 | archive-date=5 September 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905103602/http://drownedinsound.com/in_depth/4143210-home-of-metal-part-one--the-art-of-mark-wilkinson | url-status=dead }}</ref>
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Heartandtorch.jpg|right|thumb|240px]] -->

==Books==
*McClelland, Gordon. ''The Art of Rick Griffin''. Perigee Paper Tiger, 1980. Reprinted by Last Gasp, 2001.
*Harvey, Doug, edited by Susan Anderson. ''Heart and Torch: Rick Griffin's Transcendence''. Laguna Art Museum, Gingko Press, 2007.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://www.rickgriffindesigns.com/ Rick Griffin's official website]
* [https://americanart.si.edu/artist/rick-griffin-18298 Smithsonian American Art Museum: Rick Griffin]

{{Underground comix cartoonists}}
{{Inkpot Award 1970s}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Griffin, Rick}}
[[Category:1944 births]]
[[Category:1991 deaths]]
[[Category:American album-cover and concert-poster artists]]
[[Category:Albums with cover art by Rick Griffin]]
[[Category:American comic strip cartoonists]]
[[Category:Psychedelic artists]]
[[Category:Road incident deaths in California]]
[[Category:Underground cartoonists]]
[[Category:Motorcycle road incident deaths]]
[[Category:History of San Francisco]]
[[Category:People from Palos Verdes, California]]
[[Category:Inkpot Award winners]]
[[Category:Christian comics creators]]
[[Category:Narbonne High School alumni]]
[[Category:20th-century American people]]