Aaron Lange is an American underground artist operating from Cleveland, Ohio. He is the author and illustrator of numerous comics, including the cult titles 'Trim' (2011-2012) and 'Romp' (2013), both published by Vancouver's The Comix Company.
Early life
Lange was born in 1981 in Cleveland, Ohio, as the son of a banker. His mother went to work as a church secretary after divorcing Lange's father, while his sister works for a non-profit organization which helps children. His younger brother is however a blogger who specializes in video games, and also makes "guerrilla videos". Aaron also took a more alternative route. He graduated in Fine Arts from the Columbus College of Art & Design, where he already attracted attention with his transgressive illustrations. He grew up reading superhero comics, but he later turned to alternative artists like Rick Altergott, Dan Clowes and Robert Crumb, which have served influences on his own work. It took a while before he actually made his debut, though. He first worked odd jobs in a book store, a record store, a gay video store, a printing factory, a restaurant kitchen and a bar.
Romp & Trim
Since 2011 he has been regularly publishing comix through Dexter Cockburn's The Comix Company from Vancouver, Canada. Lange's work generally explores the sleazier sides of life, focusing on themes of physical and spiritual decay and consumerism, all in a politically incorrect and direct presentation. He takes great inspiration in his post-industrial Philadelphia surroundings, where the artist resided for a while because it is a "grungy, drug-infested, racist, violent shit-hole". His first series 'Romp' (2011-2012) was a pornographic satire of gender constructs and human sexuality. It was followed by his annual one-man anthology series 'Trim' (2013), which collects shorter black-and-white stories about the fringes of society in the back alleys. The series mixes autobiographical stories, short gags and biographical portraits of counter-cultural figures like Damien Hirst, Georges Bataille, William S. Burroughs, Peter Laughner, Zoe Lund, Elliot Rodgers and Slavoj Zizek, among other things.
Other publications
Apart from his own titles, Lange's work has frequently appeared in the international arts magazine Mineshaft. Lange's film and cultural criticism have appeared in the zine Cinema Sewer, and his cartoons and illustrations in Hustler, Smoke Signal and many small press publications, but also on skateboard decks, and in self-published pamphlets left behind in bus terminals.
Aaron Lange's work has received praise from underground comix legend Robert Crumb, with whom he corresponds on a regular basis. He eventually returned to his native Cleveland.
Part of Lange's comics biography of musician Peter Laughner (Pere Ubu, Rocket from the Tombs).