George Schwartz, Curator-at-Large

George Schwartz's interests are in maritime art, material culture, early collecting and museum history. Over the last 20 years at PEM, he contributed to many of the institution's successful exhibitions, including In American Waters: The Sea in American Painting; Ocean Liners: Glamour, Speed, and Style; Fiery Pool: The Maya and the Mythic Sea; and The Yachting Photography of Willard B. Jackson, among others.

Schwartz earned his B.A. in Anthropology from Brown University, his M.A. in Historical Archaeology from University of Massachusetts, Boston, and his Ph.D. in American Studies from Boston University. His book Collecting the Globe: The Salem East India Marine Society Museum explores PEM’s origins and illustrates how global objects were used to shape an emerging national identity in the early United States. Schwartz has lectured internationally and has written articles and essays for museum catalogs, journals and magazines. He teaches courses on material culture at Tufts University in the Museum Studies program.