Frank R. Paul

Frank R. Paul
Radkersburg, Austria-Hungary
Died	June 29, 1963(1963-06-29) (aged 79) Teaneck, New Jersey , U.S.
Nationality	American
Education	Architecture
Known for	Illustrator
Spouse	Rudolpha Costa Rigelsen

Frank Rudolph Paul (German: [paʊl]; born Rudolph Franz Paul; April 18, 1884 – June 29, 1963) was an American illustrator of pulp magazines in the science fiction field.

A discovery of editor Hugo Gernsback, Paul was influential in defining the look of both cover art and interior illustrations in the nascent science fiction pulps of the 1920s.^[1]

The

Biography

Paul was born on April 18, 1884, in

He died on June 29, 1963, at his home in Teaneck, New Jersey.^[7]

Work

Paul's work is characterized by dramatic compositions (often involving enormous machines, robots or spaceships), bright or even garish colors, and a limited ability to depict human faces, especially the female ones. His early architectural training is also evident in his work.

Paul illustrated the cover of Gernsback's own novel, Ralph 124C 41+: A Romance of the Year 2660 (The Stratford Company, 1925), originally a 1911–1912 serial.

, and good copies sell at auction for twenty to thirty thousand dollars. All told, his magazine covers exceed 220.

His most famous Amazing Stories cover is probably that for August 1927 (see image), illustrating

Paul created hundreds of interior illustrations from no later than 1920.[8]

From The Pen of Paul: The Fantastic Images of Frank R. Paul, edited and an introduction by Stephen Korshak with a preface by Sir Arthur C. Clarke, is a giant compendium and very first collection ever published showcasing many of Paul's full-color science-fiction artwork; Korshak Collection.^[9]

Influence on the genre

In many ways, Frank R. Paul's achievements and influence on the field through the ages cannot be overestimated. His work appeared on the cover of the first issue (April 1926) of Amazing Stories magazine, the first magazine dedicated to science fiction. He would paint all the covers for over three years. These visions of robots, spaceships, and aliens were presented to an America wherein most people did not even have a telephone. Indeed, they were the first science fiction images seen by Ray Bradbury, Arthur C. Clarke, Forrest J Ackerman and others who would go on to great prominence in the field.

Paul's emphasis on concept, action and milieu over human figures was to continue to be a defining genre signal of SF art even when executed by successors with greater technical skill and more depth of artistic vision. The visual language of the majority of SF art centers, even today, are more sophisticated versions of Paul's central tropes.

The Frank R Paul Award, named in his honor, was awarded by the Nashville Science Fiction Association from 1976 to 1996 to such distinguished artists as

Firsts

Frank R. Paul can be credited with the first color painting of a space station (August 1929,

and became well known for his work.

He was very innovative in the depiction of spaceships. Several of his illustrations were disc shaped and it has been speculated that he may have, accidentally, created the UFO craze when the first sighting of lights in the sky were described as disc shaped; this would have been the result of the psychological phenomenon known as

mental set.^{[clarification needed][14]}

References

1. ^ Jon Gustafson and Peter Nicholls, The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, ed. John Clute and Peter Nicholls, 1993, St. Martin's Press, N.Y.
2. ^ ""EMP" (Press release). Archived from the original on August 14, 2009. Retrieved May 12, 2017.. 2009(?). Experience Music Project and Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame (empsfm.org). Archived 2009-08-14. Retrieved 2013-03-19.
3. ^ ^{a b} Catalog: Paul, Frank, at Field Guide to Wild American Pulp Artists; by David Saunders; published 2009; retrieved March 18, 2015
4. ^
   1930 United States Census living in River Vale, New Jersey
5. 1920 United States Census living in Washington Township, Bergen County, New Jersey
6. ^ "Frank R. Paul biography". Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.. Archived 2012-07-22. Retrieved 2013-03-20.
7. ^ "Frank R. Paul Dead; Illustrator Was 79". The New York Times. June 30, 1963. Retrieved March 18, 2015. Frank R. Paul, an artist who was known as the dean of science-fiction illustrators, died at his home, 700 Cedar Lane. He was 79 years old.
8. ^ ^{a b c} Frank R. Paul at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database (ISFDB). Retrieved 2013-04-09.
9. ^ From The Pen of Paul: The Fantastic Images of Frank R. Paul, Stephen D. Korshak with a preface by Sir Arthur C. Clarke. Shasta-Phoenix, 2009.
10. ^ Frank R Paul Award at SF Encyclopedia
11. ^ Ron Miller, Space Art, 1978, Starlog Publ., p. 136
12. ^ November 1929 Science Wonder Stories http://www.frankwu.com/Paul-8.html
13. ^ The Science Fiction Roll of Honor, ed. Frederik Pohl, 1975, Random House, New York, pp. 223-227
14. ^ Armando Simon (2011), "Pulp fiction UFOs". Skeptic, Volume 16, no. 4.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Frank R. Paul.

• Works by Frank R. Paul at Project Gutenberg
• Frank R. Paul at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
• "Frank R. Paul biography". Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.
• Frank R. Paul Gallery
• Sci-fi Scanner
• Collections of Frank R. Paul