Robert Bishop
 |
This article is part of 'The Legends Project'
As part of the "Legends Project", Robert Bishop has been recognized as an BDSM Icon |
 |
Robert K. Bishop (1945 - 1991) was an American bondage artist, often credited as The Bishop or simply Bishop. Born in Michigan, he has been compared with John Willie and described as the Rembrandt of bondage art". He committed suicide at the age of 46.
Most of Bishop's art appeared in magazines and catalogs from 1971 to the 1980s. By the mid-1990s, Bishop's art had long been out of print. The originals had largely been lost or destroyed. Even a partial reprinting in 1992-1993 was based on previously published copies.
Hunter Rose, from 1995 to 1996, made scans from his own personal magazine collection and materials loaned to him by many others. His set of 1254 images, which are believed to be the complete collection of all available Bishop art, were regularly posted to Usenet newsgroups so that Bishop's work could be preserved and appreciated. (update: more images were scanned later, and even those may not cover all of Bishop's drawings, which may now be forever lost)
His work has been published extensively in bondage magazines, especially those of Centurions Publications and the bondage publisher House of Milan. His work was known for being very detailed and vivid.
His main theme was extremely tight and/or reinforced bondage that showed its subject straining against their restraints, often as part of a predicament bondage. The bondage depicted often involved elaborate harnesses and gags designed by Bishop, and
Bishop's illustrations were mostly in black and white pen and ink, with spot use of airbrushing for shading. His work makes much play with the contrast between pale skin and black restraints and latex garments, and with the use of shading to imply shiny rubber textures and musculature. His color illustrations were mostly for magazine covers, due to the economic constraints of bondage magazine production. He also drew in a softer pencil style, with subtle use of pencil shading.
Although almost all of his work depicted women in bondage, he also produced some series of female-dominant images, and a few male bondage images, some of which are now displayed at the Leather Archives and Museum in Chicago.
He also illustrated a series of novels by F. E. Campbell with pencil drawings produced under the pseudonym "Ashely". Bishop also produced the Fanni Hall series of damsel-in-distress bondage comics.
In addition to his many illustrations in bondage magazines, his art was showcased in a number of dedicated magazines published by House of Milan and Lyndon Distributors Limited.
Robert Bishop's passing has deprived the Bondage Community of a great and significant contributor.
Bishop first supplied line drawings to another bondage company (HOM) in 1972. His style blossomed when he began using the airbrush to add depth and dimension to his art.
Bishop redefined the modern bondage heroine by sidestepping the Sweet Gwendoline Victorian naivete and instead imbuing his characters with street smarts, feminism, and a sense of humor. This he accomplished while presenting the reader with incredible images of women restrained in such intricate detail that they somehow attained a three-dimensional, living quality. His subjects seemed to exemplify the world of the dominant and submissive fantasy - sometimes stringent, yet always revealing that this behavior was in fact a very sophisticated game. Bishop's style became so popular that he has been showcased in several non-bondage publications, and his influence can be seen flavoring the techniques of several commercial artists today - proof that he often transcended his genre.
Bishop will be remembered for bridging the gap between Golden Age illustrators such as John Willie and Eric Stanton and the present. And at present, the Bondage Community is missing a vital and brilliant creative force.
David Esquire
Work
His work has been published extensively in bondage magazines, especially those of Centurions Publications and the bondage publisher House of Milan. His work was known for being very detailed and vivid.
His main theme was extremely tight and/or reinforced bondage that showed its subjects straining against their restraints. The bondage depicted often involved elaborate harnesses and gags designed by Bishop.
Although almost all of his work depicted women in bondage, he also produced some series of female dominant images, and a few male bondage images, some of which are now displayed at the Leather Archives and Museum in Chicago.
Bishop also produced the Fanni Hall series of damsel in distress bondage comics.
In addition to his many illustrations in bondage magazines, his art was showcased in a number of dedicated magazines published by House of Milan and Lyndon Distributors Limited.
Techniques
Bishop's illustrations were mostly in black and white using pen and ink, with spot use of airbrushing for shading. His work makes much play with the contrast between pale skin and black restraints and latex garments, and with the use of shading to imply shiny rubber textures and musculature. His color illustrations were mostly for magazine covers, due to the economic constraints of bondage magazine production. He also drew in a softer pencil style, with subtle use of pencil shading. Materials for original works included pencil on vellum and inks on illustration board.
Collected illustrations
- Bishop On Bondage (series of magazines) (House of Milan, 1984)
- Bishop: The Art of Bondage (series of magazines) (Lyndon Distributors Limited, 1993)
See also
His work has been extensively circulated on the Internet, and originals of his pictures are now collectors' items.
Partial list of magazine credits
|
|
See also Bishop Obit and/or Green Door
External link
- Robert Bishop remembered
- Abductor.com - Hunter Rose (Reg. Required) ( X Site down 11/22 R/ )
- http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ArtofRobertBishop
- http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BishopsArt
Chat rooms • What links here • Copyright info • Contact information • Category:Root