Cynthia Johnson Schwarz (1923 Los Angeles, CA – 2020 Kingston, NY) died April 30th at the age of 96½. A painter and writer who completed a Ph.D. in Art Education at New York University before th0e age of 60, Cynthia leaves 6 loving children, 3 son-in-laws, and 4 grandchildren.
Cynthia moved to Kingston in the early 1990’s to the first house owned. It required a great deal of renovation, mainly done by her sculptor son, Casey Schwarz, a resident artist.
Cynthia read The New York Times daily, and when able, bought the Kingston Times to keep up with local news. She patronized the local shops and restaurants, with and without visiting family members, especially eating at Deisings, befriending the waitresses Isabelle and Joan from the very beginning. AskArt Gallery had several exhibits over the years and a one man show of Casey’s sculptures which brought the whole family. Cynthia also frequented Broadway Lights, Catskill Art Supplies, the Kingston Library, Neko’s Pharmacy where another “Cynthia” works, Hannaford’s, and Barnes & Noble Bookstore where she was known by sight.
In her last 10 years, unable to get about on her own, Cynthia enjoyed the taxi rides en route to lunch, pointing out to the driver, “those houses are made of bricks [under the paneling] by the Bricklayers.” She had once photographed the old factory of the bricklayers down by the river.
When I rented a car, or a family member drove in, Cynthia saw more of the countryside, from the Hudson River, Rhinebeck, Annendale to Saugerties and Woodstock, where she lived for a period as a child.
The daughter of sculptor Burt W. Johnson (1890-1927), Cynthia was working on a memoir of her father until the end.
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