Heritage Auctions Magazine Book Review:
Imagination Unleashed
by Don Mangus
Illustrations by science-fiction legend Frank R. Paul inspire a sense of wonder.
From the Pen of Paul: The Fantastic Images of Frank R. Paul
Edited by Stephen D. Korshak
Shasta-Phoenix Publications,
starting at $24.95
Stephen Korshak's spectacular monograph on science-fiction artist Frank R. Paul is an essential volume for all fans of the genre that inspires "a sense of wonder." It's a book to be enjoyed and celebrated.
Paul (1884-1963) was the Promethean talent who blazed a trail for all who followed in the art of speculative fiction — from his sublime, star-studded Amazing Stories pulp covers to his unforgettable, incendiary comic-book classic featuring a red-hot Human Torch burning through a bank vault door on the cover of Marvel Comics #1. "Paul remains the undisputed king of the pulp artists," Sir Arthur C. Clarke once said. Adds Ray Bradbury: "Paul's fantastic covers for Amazing Stories changed my life forever."
In 1914, Paul met publisher Hugo Gernsback and began his magazine illustration career in the periodicals Electrical Experimenter and Science and Invention. In 1926, popular culture history was made when Amazing Stories was launched, and Paul rose to the occasion by creating the title's logo, cover and all of the interior black and white illustrations. The brave new genre proved a success, and by career's end, Paul had created more than 200 published sciencefiction covers and more than 1,000 black and white interiors. As Korshak aptly states, "To say that Frank R. Paul is the father of science-fiction illustration art is an understatement — his fertile imagination legacy continues to influence the field today."
Spanning 144 pages, this lavish book is a fan's treasure trove — the first compendium showcasing many of Paul's full-color, science-fiction works, along with vintage photographs and documents, as well as insightful appreciations and critical essays by Clarke, Korshak, Sam Moskowitz, Gerry de la Ree, Forrest J. Ackerman and Roger Hill. Of special note for scholars and collectors is the comprehensive bibliographical index for the science-fiction artwork of Paul by Jerry Weist and Robert Weinberg.
This handsome book is available in four editions: softcover edition for $24.95, hardcover edition $39.95, deluxe edition $59.95, and "ultra deluxe" edition $395. They are available directly through the publisher's Web site, www.shasta-phoenix.com.
Don Mangus is a comic and illustration art expert at Heritage Auctions. He has previously written for Comic Book Artist and Charlton Spotlight magazines. |  |
Heritage Auctions Magazine Summer/Fall 2009 Copyright ©2009 by Heritage Auctions, Inc.
