Description

Arthur Fleck Original Variation by Rob Bishop.

This piece of art is etched on maple wood.

Rob Bishop is a Hertfordshire/Essex based mixed media artist who studied graphic design at college and model making at University. Rob Bishop just loves wood. For several years he has worked as a cabinet maker and by combining all his skills he has developed a unique style of artwork that has caught public attention. Rob uses a mixed media approach to his work which combines digital art, wood work and painting. He will digitally manipulate an image, etches it onto a 12mm maple veneered board then hand paints the piece by using many layers of wood stains, spray paints and lacquer. When satisfied with the image a final layer of lacquer is applied followed by a hand polished finish to produce originals or a series of original variations and finishes with a hand made frame. He produces either a large one-off original or a series of 10 or 45 whereby each image is hand finished and coloured to ensure uniqueness in every piece. Both the artwork and frame are finished with a thumbprint signature. No two pieces can ever be the same each therefore are truly original.

Arthur Fleck was an amateur stand-up comedian and a professional clown.  He lost his job as a clown after being framed by a co-worker. He was later repeatedly beaten up by various people and unsuccessfully tried to resurrect his career. He also lost access to his medication and therapist, causing him to succumb to madness, killing his deceitful mother and taking on the identity of The Joker.

Born in Gotham City on November 21, 1946, Arthur was abandoned as a baby in his very early days of life and had been adopted by a young woman named Penny Fleck, who poorly raised her son. She allowed him to be beaten by her boyfriend and the young boy was tied to a heater and left to starve for days on end. Arthur suffered severe head trauma that was believed to have given him his laughing disorder, which he was told was a condition by his mother for most of his life. He was a very lonely individual where his only company was his mother and a pet cat, longing for a romantic relationship that he had never gotten. While he was still aware of being abused in his adolescent years, the memories remained clouded for decades.