Munich Round Up (MRU) No. 119

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Herbert W. Franke Waldemar  Kumming

1971

Ephemera

36 leaves; 30 cm; side‑stapled

The Library

Description

Herbert W. Franke was not only a pioneering computer artist but also a successful science-fiction writer. This sci-fi fanzine, published in June 1971 by the Munich group of the Science Fiction Club Deutschland (SFCD), illustrates his bridging of these two worlds.

For this issue of the zine—of which approximately 40 copies were printed—Franke contributed an article entitled “Das Programm DRAKULA,” referring to the computer program that the artist had developed for his series of plotter drawings of the same name. The article opens with a general discussion of computational creativity. “Every reader of science-fiction novels knows that computers hold fascinating possibilities for development,” Franke writes.

Also included in the fanzine are four inserts of images from the “Drakula” series, showing fractal dragon curves in various configurations.