Paul R. Alexander (September 3, 1937 – June 14, 2021) was an American commercial artist and illustrator. ^{[1] [2] [3]} In a career spanning from 1976–1998, he specialized in creating art for the covers of science fiction paperbacks and occasionally magazines. ^[2] He was usually credited as Paul Alexander, but occasionally as Paul R. Alexander. ^[2]

Life and career

Alexander was born on September 3, 1937, in Richmond, Wayne County, Indiana, ^{[1] [2] [3]} the son of Fred and Ora Olive Alexander. ^[1] He graduated from Wittenburg University in Springfield, Ohio, in 1967, and also studied at the Art Center College of Design, Los Angeles. ^[3] He was "one of the top science fiction paperback cover artists of the 1970s and '80s." ^[3] His career as a commercial artist on the East Coast spanned from 1976–1998. ^{[3] [1]} He was also a model train collector. ^[1] Alexander died on June 14, 2021, at the Brethren Retirement Community in Greenville, Ohio. He was survived by a brother and sister-in-law, niece, and nephew. ^[1]

Reception

Vincent Di Fate, fellow science fiction illustrator and a historian of the field, grouped Alexander together with Dean Ellis, Christopher Foss and John C. Berkey as "gadget" artists, "adept at painting futuristic hardware." ^[3]

Notes