George and Charis Schwarz artworks, manuscripts and other material

fonds

1963-2013

Graphic Materials, Photographs, Drawings, Prints, Posters, Textual Records

9659190

152 photographic prints
8 drawings
2 prints
0.46 metres of textual material (3 boxes), includes photographs and drawings

George Schwarz was born in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1935. He attended art school in his late teens and began exhibiting art in 1957. After moving to Spain he met his future partner Charis McKittrick, who was on her way from Australian to London to further her nursing training. In 1969 they arrived in Sydney having ridden overland from Spain on a BMW motorbike. They lived first in Kings Cross and later in Darlinghurst, where they made erotic films together, and created extraordinary objects from a wide variety of material ranging from antique bones to statues of baby Jesus, which George also used in his surrealist photographs. George taught photography at the National Art School from 1970-1974. He continued teaching at Alexander Mackie School of Art and City Art Institute until 1997, while Charis resumed her nursing career.

References:
Library acquisition file
Vale George Shwarz, National Art School. Accessed 3 June 2021. https://nas.edu.au/vale/

The collection reflects the collaborative work of George and Charis Schwarz and includes erotic photographic prints, photomontages, pen and ink drawings, manuscripts, film and musical play scripts, posters and badges, as well as George's surrealist photography, handbooks on photographic and printing processes, and a thesis.

Series 1: George and Charis Schwarz artworks, photographs and other material
Series 2: George and Charis Schwarz manuscripts and other papers

Copyright restrictions may apply:
Please acknowledge:: Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales and Courtesy copyright holder

Dates supplied by donor