Paul Smith (artist)

For other people with this name see Paul Smith

Paul Smith (September 21, 1921 – June 25, 2007) was an American typewriter artist.

Biography

Early life

Smith was born in 1921 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He suffered from severe spastic cerebral palsy from an early age. The loss of fine motor control of his face and hands made it impossible for him to attend school—or even eat, clothe, or bathe himself—and also made it difficult for him to express himself.

Early in life Paul discovered the typewriter and a technique for using it to create pictures. He was able to use one hand to steady the other and thus press the desired key. He was creating typewriter art from age 15, and steadily refined his technique.

In the 1940s, Paul's family moved to Hollywood, Florida.

Paul never married and had no children. In 1967 he entered a retirement facility.

Death and afterward

As he aged, Smith's cataracts worsened, and he was not able to create art of as high a quality. He stopped creating pictures in 2004.

Smith died in June, 2007.

Philosophical and/or political views

He was devoted to his family and was a committed Catholic.

Published works

Paul did not publish any works, but his work has been collected into several books of art.

See also

• Typewriter
• ASCII art

External links

• http://www.paulsmithfoundation.org/ Official website
  • http://www.paulsmithfoundation.org/main_gallery.html Gallery
• http://www.chessville.com/misc/Paul%20Smith/Paul_Smith.htm An article, includes samples
• http://www.oregonnews.com/article/20070628/NEWS/70628031 Obituary and more information