| Julian Schnabel, one of the most recognized faces of | | | | skills quickly propelled him into the public eye as is |
| Abstract Art in the modern era, was born on | | | | evident from the fact that his artworks can be found |
| October 26, 1951 in the New York City, to Esta and | | | | in the museums all over world. Soon he was |
| Jack Schnabel. This multi-faceted American | | | | recognized among the geniuses of the 20th century |
| personality is a painter, a filmmaker, a sculptor, a | | | | art. His paintings consist of vivacious colors and |
| furniture designer, and a property developer. Schnabel | | | | adventurous brush strokes. Julian's unusual painting |
| grew up in a Russian-Jewish neighborhood near | | | | styles are generally filled with great raw power and |
| Ocean Parkway in Brooklyn; he though spent most | | | | emotional energy such as in "The Walk Home (1985)." |
| of his formative years in Brownsville, Texas. He was | | | | Throughout his life, Schnabel has often been |
| inclined towards art from childhood and went on to | | | | surrounded by controversies, most of them cropping |
| study B.F.A. from the University of Houston in 1973. | | | | up due to his outspoken and brash behavior. Several |
| He went back to New York the same year to | | | | critics blamed him for commercializing his art and |
| attend the Whitney Museum's Independent Study | | | | derided his work. To the admirers however, who |
| program for young artists. He married twice and has | | | | love his eccentric personality, Julian Schnabel is a |
| three children from his first wife, Jacqueline Beaurang, | | | | modern day hero who is credited for reviving |
| who is a clothing designer. Julian Schnabel has twin | | | | 'painting' as a noble art form. In the year 1987, |
| sons from his second wife, Spanish Basque actor and | | | | Schnabel published his autobiography, "CVJ: |
| model, Olatz López Garmendia. | | | | Nicknames of Maitre D's & Other Excerpts from |
| In the beginning, the artist lived a bohemian lifestyle | | | | Life." |
| and traveled extensively across the globe, funding his | | | | Schnabel has also written and directed three movies, |
| jaunts by working as a cook and a cab driver. Julian's | | | | which were artistic biographies, including "Basquiat" in |
| maverick lifestyle earned him the reputation of 'the | | | | 1996, a biopic on the painter Jean-Michel Basquiat, and |
| bad boy of the art world.' He was a regular visitor to | | | | "Before Night Falls," based on the memoir of Cuban |
| the Max's Kansas City, a restaurant-nightclub in the | | | | poet Reinaldo Arenas in the year 2000. He was also |
| New York City, where he practiced his art. This | | | | the producer of these movies. In addition, Schnabel |
| modern age neo-expressionist however, became a | | | | won the award for best director at 2007 Cannes Film |
| force to reckon with, after he exhibited his work at | | | | Festival for his third movie, "The Diving Bell and the |
| the Mary Boone Gallery in 1979. The following year, | | | | Butterfly," which was an adaptation of a French |
| Julian participated in Venice Biennale and was an | | | | memoir. |
| immediate success. Schnabel's ability to market his | | | | |