Hans Schwarz NEAC (1922-2003)

              Born in Vienna in 1922, Hans Schwarz escaped the Nazi occupation of Austria aged sixteen, and made his home in England for the rest of his life. His mother had died when he was twelve, and his father was killed in Auschwitz.

At the outbreak of war Schwarz was interned on the Isle of Man.

On his release in 1941 he resumed his art training, that had begun in Vienna, at Birmingham College of Art. A period as a freelance commercial illustrator ended in 1965 when he decided to become a full time artist. Initially he moved his family to Somerset, 1966 - 1970, before returning to London where he lived and worked in Greenwich until his death in 2003.

Schwarz was a versatile artist, painting in many mediums, as well as a sculptor and author of seven books. He was however best known as a portrait artist, mostly in oils.

His paintings were often sparse in composition with minimal backgrounds and subjects that appeared inward looking and almost private. His paintings are more about presence than true likeness.

Hans Schwarz was elected a member of the NEAC in 1982. He was also a member of the Royal Watercolour Society, the Royal Society of Portrait Painters, the Royal Society of British Artists and the Contemporary Portrait Society.