"The Father of Science Fiction Art"

OVER the years we've decorated this weblog with noteworthy artwork by some of the best illustrators; one of our favorites would have to be . . .

"Frank R. Paul (1884-1963)."

(See Wikipedia HERE; the ISFDB HERE; the SFE HERE; and The Official Frank R. Paul Gallery starting HERE).

By David Saunders (born 1954).

First appearance: Illustration Magazine No. 54, 2016.

Article (26 pages; copiously illustrated and thoroughly researched).

Online at Archive.org (HERE).

   "As for me, Frank R. Paul romanced me with future architectures when I was eight, summoning me to cities lost in the Time Ahead until he landed me in shocks of joy, in the colored facades and high-rises of the Chicago World’s Fair."

Introduction:

  "Frank R. Paul has been praised as the father of science fiction art, and cited as an inspiration by Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, and Ray Bradbury. In 2009, he was posthumously awarded induction to the Science Fiction Hall of Fame. Several books have been published on his work, and yet little is known about the man behind the art. There is a mysterious duality in his work, which is at the same time both wildly inventive and meticulously executed. What kind of artist would dream up fantastic outer space creatures, and then proceed to capture their likeness in the clinically-precise style of a 19th century botanical rendering?"

References:

(Note: All links are to Wikipedia unless otherwise noted.)

- "inspired by the romantic Orientalism" (HERE) "of Eugene Delacroix (1798-1863)" (HERE).

- "the wealthy family of Clarence Hungerford Mackay (1874-1938)" (HERE).

- "Visiting guests to Harbor Hill included Nikola Tesla (1856-1943)" (HERE), "Guillermo [sic] Marconi (1874-1937)" (HERE), "and Thomas Edison (1847-1931)" (HERE).

- "celebrated newspaper artists, such as Charles Dana Gibson (1867-1944)" (HERE), "Richard Felton Outcault (1863-1928)" (HERE), "and Winsor McCay (1869-1934)" (HERE).

- "Hugo Gernsback (1884-1967)" (HERE).

- "the spectacular building" (HERE), "designed by Cass Gilbert (1859-1934)" (HERE).

- "the silent film comedian Charlie Chase" (HERE).

- "Analyzing Character" (online HERE) "by Katherine Blackford" (HERE).

- "one of the most influential early science fiction novels, Ralph 124C 41+ by Hugo Gernsback" (WARNING! SPOILERS! HERE; online HERE).

- "across from the glamorous Waldorf Hotel" (HERE).

- "the Empire State Building" (HERE).

- "called the George Washington Bridge" (HERE).

- "Hans Wesso (1894-1948)" (HERE), "Leo Morey (1899-1965)" (HERE; ISFDB), "and Howard V. Brown (1878-1945)" (HERE; ISFDB).

- "eight months before the infamous stock market crash" (HERE); "the Great Depression" (HERE).

- "Bernarr Macfadden" (HERE), "Harry Donenfeld" (HERE), "and Harold Hersey" (HERE).

- "the famous Johnson Wax Building" (HERE), "designed by Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959)" (HERE).

- "the 1939 NYC World's Fair" (HERE); "the trylon and perisphere" (HERE).

- "next to the young author, Ray Bradbury" (HERE).

- "The Mightiest Machine" (WARNING! SPOILERS! HERE; online HERE) "by John W. Campbell" (HERE), "and The Skylark of Space" (WARNING! SPOILERS! HERE; online HERE) "by E. E. Smith" (HERE).

- "fans, like Forrey J. Ackerman" (HERE).

Resources:

- We've encountered Frank R. Paul's artwork several times; see (HERE) for those postings (in reverse chronological order).

The bottom line:

Artwork by Rick Sternbach

Unless otherwise noted, all bibliographical data are derived from The FictionMags Index created by William G. Contento & edited by Phil Stephensen-Payne.

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