Paul Smith, the man with extraordinary talent was born in Philadelphia
on September 21, 1921 with severe cerebral palsy.
Not only had Paul beaten the odds of a life with spastic cerebral palsy,
a disability that impeded his speech & mobility but also taught himself
to become a master artist as well as a terrific chess player even after
being devoid of a formal education as a child.
When typing, Paul used his left hand to steady his right one. Since he
couldn't press two keys at the same time, he almost always locked the
shift key down and made his pictures using the symbols at the top of the
number keys. In other words, his pictures were based on these characters
.... @ # $ % ^ & * ( ) _ .
Across seven decades, Paul created hundreds of pictures. He often gave
the originals away. Sometimes, but not always, he kept or received a
copy for his own records.
As his mastery of the typewriter grew, he developed techniques to create
shadings, colors, and textures that made his work resemble pencil or
charcoal drawings."
This great man passed away on June 25, 2007, but left behind a
collection of his amazing artwork that will be an inspiration for many.
