Born in 1952, Michael Peterson, aka Charles Bronson, followed a life path of violence and rebellion, leaving in his wake a stream of bruised and abused prison staff, psychiatric workers and fist fighters.
Bronson’s aim in life has been to become famous, and he’s used his aggressive personality to become both notorious and infamous. From taking librarians and art teachers hostage to attacking fellow inmates and guards, Bronson’s legacy of violence has a pathological bent to it – the man simply enjoys terrorizing other human beings. His time in prison has earned him the dubious honor of being named Britain’s most dangerous inmate as well as Britain’s most expensive inmate, due to the cost of damages he has caused and the costs of housing him during his criminal career.
In 2008, Bronson, a biographical film of Charlie Bronson’s life was released. Tom Hardy put in an excellent performance, giving viewers a look not only at Bronson’s actions but a peek into the man’s state of mind.
During his years in prison, Charles Bronson has created a number of mixed media art works that express his experiences both in prison and in the outside world. These drawings are intriguing, as many of them express Bronson’s violence and madness alongside a lighthearted sense of humor. To quote from Charlie Bronson’s art website; “Enjoy the madness! Listen to the man in the concrete coffin speak. The born again artist, awaiting the day he can fly the nest and unleash his talent on the world.” Which of his talents would that be, one wonders. His talent with aggression, with madness, with art, or a combination of all three?
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- Prison inmate and artist Charles Bronson creates a visual pun in this humorous, psychological self portrait by combining his roles as a convict and artist.
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- Artistic inmate Charles Bronson shows his views on imprisonment in this painting about his time in psychiatric care. Bronson’s paintings and drawings allow viewers to catch a glimpse of his madness through his expression of his own tortured psyche.
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- Charles Bronson creates a self portrait of himself in a psychiatric asylum, holding a sign that reads, “I told you I was sick.” Like most of Bronson’s paintings, this piece includes surrealist symbols of violence and aggression.
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- Charlie Bronson draws a tortured spider and his own twisted humor about its demise. Torture of insects and animals is often linked to psychopathy.
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- Insanity and humor merge in this prison art work by infamous inmate Charlie Bronson. The world, as seen through Bronson’s eyes, is a torture chamber populated by twisted sadists and fragile puppet masters.
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- Prisoner Charlie Bronson expresses his inner musings in his unique art style, commenting on man’s relationship with his inner darkness, a part of the human psyche that is often referred to as the shadow.
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- This colorful mixed media art work by Charlie Bronson combines his madness, violence and humor. This piece is both a self portrait and an expression of his animalistic urges.
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- This self protrait drawn by Charles Bronson reveals both the violent and philosophical sides of his personality. The portrait eloquently expresses Bronson’s love of violence with its red eyes, blood drops and aggressive facial expression.
