He paints with a manual typewriter.Īnd by the time Paul quit creating beautiful pictures with thousands of delicate key strokes, he left behind hundreds of extraordinary, thought-provoking pieces that make a statement not only about their subject matter, but especially about how they were created. It took him 16 years to learn to speak – and 32 to learn to walk.īut Paul’s claim to fame – the achievement that has made him a source of inspiration to people in the art community and at all levels of ability – is his mastery of a common office machine as an artistic medium. Though his condition made it difficult for him to grasp pens or pencils, eat, dress, or express his thoughts, he persevered. It would not be the only time he beat the odds. He pressed his thumb against the ribbon to create the shading on the paper.
Paul’s art required pre-planning, roller adjustments, ribbon changes, and shading techiques. He beat those odds by living to the ripe old age of 85 – far longer than the average lifespan for an adult male. When Paul was born on Septemin Philadelphia, his doctors didn’t believe he would live too long. Physicians were still recommending that children with his form of Cerebral Palsy be institutionalized. In his time, Paul was not entitled to a mainstream education – he was not taught to read or write. Having a severe case of spastic Cerebral Palsy that affected his speech, his mobility, and his fine motor coordination, Paul’s life began when opportunities were limited. Known worldwide as the “Typewriter Artist,” Paul Smith’s story spans eight decades, seven in which he created typewriter art. It’s been six years on June 25 since the world lost Paul Smith at the age of 85, but not before several generations had an opportunity to admire his distinct and intricate gallery of art. Born in 1921 during a time when people with Cerebral Palsy received little support and garnered little attention from the community, Paul Smith lived a full life painting intricate pictures with what, at the time, was a common office machine – the manual typewriter.
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