Frank Mullaney was born and raised outside of Boston, and at an early age developed dual passions for theater and photography. He moved to New York City to pursue an acting career in August of 1977, the same week that Elvis Presley died and the Son of Sam was apprehended (as he later liked to recall). In the early 2000s, Frank took up photography again, this time working with digital technology, and he soon shifted the bulk of his creative energies toward his work as a photographer. He studied photography at The International Center for Photography with, among others, Amy Arbus, Liam Cunningham and Bruce Katz, and developed interests in both commercial and art photography. His work has been exhibited at galleries in NYC, Los Angeles, the Catskills, Provincetown, and Mexico City. He remains best known for his Wallpaper Saints series, portraits of individuals from the gay, lesbian and transgender community, which he said was inspired by the religious holy cards of his Catholic youth.  

Frank was a longtime survivor of HIV. He was diagnosed as HIV+ sometime in the late 1980s after having some early “pre-AIDS” health conditions (as they were known at the time).   

Frank died February 23, 2026 at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. The cause of death was respiratory complications brought on by lung cancer, which was originally diagnosed in July, 2025.