Gary Schwartz

In my studio practice I am considered a Social Realist painter, although Deborah Solomon of The New York Times once referred to my style as POP Realism. Utilizing a very strong narrative in each series that I create, my current body of work consists of acrylics on canvas, depicting my childhood memories of Coney Island, where I grew up, as well as my travels abroad and throughout the US. The works utilize contemporary realism with an homage to Dutch and Flemish baroque paintings. 

When not in the studio, I can be found teaching 6th through 12th grade art. I am currently completing my 27th year of full time art teaching, having worked in some of Manhattan’s finest independent schools. I received my BFA from the  New York School of Visual Arts in 1983. 
I grew up in the Coney Island section of Brooklyn New York in the 1960’s and 1970’s, where my father was employed as the manager of the world famous Nathan’s hotdog empire. This gritty landscape has had an enormous influence on the art that I create today in 2022.

                                                                                      

                                                 Artist photo by Emily-Greta Tabourin,   2022