Overview
Exhibit at The Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation
Lillian Schwartz: Whirlwind of Creativity is a career-retrospective exhibition showcasing the groundbreaking work of multimedia artist Lillian Schwartz.
Recognized for existing at the forefront of the digital art movement in the late 1960s, Lillian Schwartz broke barriers throughout her career in a field that was heavily dominated by men. Eager to bridge art, science and technology, Lillian worked at a time when artists were forced to defend computer-based artwork as a viable medium — while also actively trying to push its boundaries.
Featuring over 100 artifacts, Lillian Schwartz: Whirlwind of Creativity explores three core themes across the artist’s life and career, including rarely shown mixed-media works, studio equipment, and large-scale film and video projections.
Moving Forward
How did Lillian's upbringing influence her journey to discover her creative voice? Explore early works that featured mechanical movement or motion themes.
Making Art in a Science Lab
What was the impact of Lillian's invitation to visit Bell Laboratories, a renowned research facility in New Jersey? Uncover Lillian's learning process during her first two years at Bell as she used new techniques to create computer-assisted art.
The Limits and Possibilities of Machines
Lillian saw computers as exciting tools full of possibilities and sought out the limitations of technology to embrace glitches, feedback and happy mistakes.
Today, art and media historians celebrate Lillian Schwartz as a pioneer who found innovative uses for new digital tools, producing revolutionary and genre-defying works of art.
We invite you to celebrate Lillian's innovative body of work at Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation. The exhibition will also mark the debut of our new Collections Gallery, built specifically to host exhibitions of pieces from The Henry Ford’s own collections.
Lillian Schwartz: Whirlwind of Creativity is curated by Kristen Gallerneaux, curator of communications & information technology at The Henry Ford.
