Marie Jamil Schwab (*1996) is a Visual Artist from Germany. She studied the Fine Arts under Prof. Björn Dahlem at Bauhaus University Weimar and Intermedia Art under Prof. Tokihiro Sato at Tokyo University of the Arts.
In November 2025, her works will be on view at Galerie Freitag 18.30 in Aachen.
FROM STUDIES TO PRACTICE
In 2018, I began my studies in Fine Arts under Prof. Björn Dahlem at the Bauhaus University Weimar. During the Covid-19 pandemic, we art students were unable to access our studios for almost a year. Together with a group of fellow students, we therefore rented the former “Altes Funkhaus” in Weimar at our own expense, in order to create a place for artistic work again. Although the building had no heating, running water, or sanitary facilities, it offered us the opportunity to explore new forms of community and to exchange ideas about artistic and societal processes during the challenging pandemic period. Out of this extraordinary experience, two exhibition projects emerged that addressed art as a basic human need and as a foundation for communal structures.
My mother, Moira Scholz, is a landscape architect. In 2020, she acquired a one-hectare forest plot near Würzburg, which she is developing in cooperation with the Landscape Conservation Association, working towards greater naturalness and biodiversity. Since 2021, my mother’s forest has become both inspiration and creative site for many of my artistic works.
From October 2021 to January 2023, I lived mostly abroad while continuing my art studies online: In winter 2021, I participated in the artist residency Hakoniemi - Luova Tila in northern Finland. In the seclusion of this remote place, in freezing temperatures, I created the series Awaken The Fire Inside, inspired by the boundary experience of a hermit-like existence in an unfamiliar land.
In spring 2022, I moved to the community project “Laozi House” in southern Portugal. I spent the second half of 2022 in Barcelona, where I was given a studio space by the art center HANGAR.
At the beginning of 2023, I returned to Weimar to complete my art studies, graduating with my diploma exhibition INTERCONNECTEDNESS in September 2023.
My father, the photographer Valentin Schwab, passed away in 2012, leaving behind an extensive body of photographic work and an archive. Since 2017, I have been managing this archive together with my mother. After several years of intensive preparation, the exhibition Valentin Schwab. Eine Retrospektive opened in February 2023 at the Museum im Kulturspeicher in Würzburg.
In August 2023, I participated in the LuppArt Residency on Lupa Island near Budapest.
For the winter semester 2023/24, I moved to Japan to study at Tokyo University of the Arts under Prof. Tokihiro Sato.
At the beginning of 2024, I returned to Germany. In Kassel, I contributed to the organization and curation of the Galeriefest: Cultural Crossroads, a citywide event spanning 13 venues across Kassel, including the Museum für Sepulkralkultur and Grimmwelt.
As part of the “Kasseler Museumsnacht” on September 7, 2024, I opened my first solo exhibition "In My Mother’s Forest".
In September 2025, I was nominated for the Gunter Ullrich Art Prize in Würzburg and in November I am going to show my artworks at Galerie Freitag 18.30 in Aachen.
I create my works in my studio located in a historic forester’s house near Castle Berlepsch, thanks to the generous support of Graf von Berlepsch.
ARTIST STATEMENT
My artistic practice is a deep exploration of the boundaries of body and mind, uncovering a primal sense of interconnectedness with nature and the elements. I seek altered states of consciousness by challenging my physical and psychological limits - whether through exposure to the cold, breathwork, or facing my fears - to ignite a creative spark that brings me closer to the raw, elemental forces around us.
The work I create during these experiences invites viewers into a portal of perception, revealing an intimate and intuitive relationship between human and nature. Through my practice, I aim to capture the way these profound encounters blur the line between self and the natural world, exposing a resonance that transcends individuality. Each piece reflects the symbiotic flow between what I experience within and what I observe outside, creating visual expressions that connect my inner and outer landscapes.
Another dimension of my work lies in my fascination with the depth psychology of fairy tales and mythology. These narratives, often a child's first encounter with the profound themes of fear, transformation, and mortality, provide symbolic images that resonate deeply with both the subconscious and conscious mind. I see these stories as mirrors to our inner worlds, offering insights that help us navigate universal human emotions and challenges. By integrating this symbolic language into my artistic practice, I seek to invite reflection and evoke a space where viewers can project their own subconscious onto my work, much like the tales of old have done for generations.
Over the past four years, my mother’s forest has been both a sanctuary and a source of inspiration. As a landscape architect, my mother has been working to restore this one-hectare forest near Würzburg, Germany, to a thriving ecosystem, collaborating with conservation efforts to bring it back to its natural diversity. This forest has become my open-air studio, where I am guided by my mother's passion and knowledge of the land’s flora and fauna. Together, we share a reverence for this living space: a bond that threads my artistic exploration into a broader relationship with Mother Nature. The forest is not only a physical setting but a symbol of my connection to both my mother and the earth, but a place where my creative and personal roots intertwine.
The work I create during these experiences invites viewers into a portal of perception, revealing an intimate and intuitive relationship between human and nature. Through my practice, I aim to capture the way these profound encounters blur the line between self and the natural world, exposing a resonance that transcends individuality. Each piece reflects the symbiotic flow between what I experience within and what I observe outside, creating visual expressions that connect my inner and outer landscapes.
Another dimension of my work lies in my fascination with the depth psychology of fairy tales and mythology. These narratives, often a child's first encounter with the profound themes of fear, transformation, and mortality, provide symbolic images that resonate deeply with both the subconscious and conscious mind. I see these stories as mirrors to our inner worlds, offering insights that help us navigate universal human emotions and challenges. By integrating this symbolic language into my artistic practice, I seek to invite reflection and evoke a space where viewers can project their own subconscious onto my work, much like the tales of old have done for generations.
Over the past four years, my mother’s forest has been both a sanctuary and a source of inspiration. As a landscape architect, my mother has been working to restore this one-hectare forest near Würzburg, Germany, to a thriving ecosystem, collaborating with conservation efforts to bring it back to its natural diversity. This forest has become my open-air studio, where I am guided by my mother's passion and knowledge of the land’s flora and fauna. Together, we share a reverence for this living space: a bond that threads my artistic exploration into a broader relationship with Mother Nature. The forest is not only a physical setting but a symbol of my connection to both my mother and the earth, but a place where my creative and personal roots intertwine.