Untitled, c. 1980
Paul Schwarz was born in Detroit in 1946 and raised in Warren, MI. He attended the Art School of the Society for Arts and Crafts (now the College for Creative Studies) from 1965 to 1968. Then, in part as a protest to the Vietnam War, he moved to Canada, returning to Detroit two years later to further his studies at Wayne State University (1970 - 1973). He lived in several buildings around the Cultural area including the Forsythe Building where several other artists had gathered. His work was exhibited at the infamous Willis Gallery, Detroit (with Colin Fraser in 1974 and solo in 1977) and included in the iconic exhibition Kick Out the Jams presented at the Detroit Institute of Arts in 1980 and Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago in 1981. The museum exhibition presented a collection of artists that continues to define contemporary art in Detroit.
Unlike many of the Cass Corridor artists who moved to New York City beginning in the mid-70s, Schwarz continued to live in the Cass Corridor. It wasn't until 1994 that he moved to Oak Park with artist and poet, Christine Monhollen; they married on St. Patrick's Day (the artist's favorite holiday) 1998.
During his life, Schwarz's work was also exhibited at such venues as Cranbrook Art Museum; Flint Institute of Art; Wayne State University; Feigenson, Feigenson-Rosenstein and Feigenson-Preston Galleries; Cedar Rapids Museum of Art (Cedar Rapids, IA); and Hill Gallery. In 1999 he was honored with a retrospective at Center Galleries at the College for Creative Studies. His work is included in several collections including the Detroit Institute of Arts and Wayne State University.