A black and white strip of three portrait photographs of a man with dark hair, wearing a dark jacket over a shirt, with varying facial expressions.

"I have learned when looking in the mirror asking who am I, where am I, where am I going, that the mirror only echoes the questions back to me slightly twisted by reflection.

I am not unaware of the humorous qualities in my work; it's dangerous to take yourself too seriously, the danger is in being boring."

— Charles Parness

January 1, 1945 Charles Parness is born to parents Hyman and Dorothy (Shulman) Parness. 

1962-65 - Parness studies Fine Art and Graphic Design at Parsons School of Design

1963-66 - Parness studies Art Education at New York University

1966-99 - Parness receives MFA in Sculpture from Pratt Institute

1969-1975 - Parness teaches art at The Adams School of Special Education

1970 - Parness receives a permanent New York State Teaching Certification

1970s - Parness substitute teaches for Martha Diamond at the School of Visual Arts New York City 

1976 - Parness starts his study in self-portraits. 

1979 - Parness meets Janet Fish 

An artist standing in front of a large landscape painting in an art studio.

1986 - Charles painting Food For Thought in Vermont.

Black and white portrait of a man with thick, curly hair and a mustache, wearing a denim shirt and a jacket.
Black and white photo of Janet Fish and Charles Parness behind a wooden chair structure, with Janet Fish peeking through one of the openings and Charles Parness looking over the top. The setting appears to be an indoor space with a window and vent visible. The top right corner has text about the setup and artists, and at the bottom, it states the photo was taken by Sigrid Estrada.

1984 - Parness shows his work in group exhibition The New Portrait at MoMA P.S. 1, see details here.

1988 - Parness teaches a semester of advanced painting at SUNY Purchase

1989-1991 - Parness teaches at the Marie Walsh Sharpe Art Foundation Summer Seminar in Colorado Springs, CO

1989 - Parness is exhibited at the Visual Arts Gallery at SUNY Purchase in Charles Parness Paintings

1990 - Parness and Fish are featured in Avenue Magazine sharing on their relationship and her work. Read the article here.

A man with a beard and long dark hair, wearing a plaid shirt, looking to the side indoors with plants in the background.
Cover of American Artist magazine with a painting of a bearded man in profile, surrounded by fish, set against a vibrant blue and yellow background.

1990 - Parness is featured on the cover of American Artist and in the article "We're Talking Serious Comedy!" by John Arthur, July 1990 Issue

1991 - Parness is on faculty at the Vermont Studio School in Johnson, Vermont

1993 - Parness has a Solo Exhibition and Residency at the Association for Visual Arts in Chattanooga, TN

1993 - Parness curates the show Men Working at G.W. Einstein in New York, NY

1993 - Parness gives a Visiting Artist Lecture at Yale University in New Haven, CT

1994 - Parness shows his work at solo exhibition Faces, the Consequences at the University of Wisconsin Art Gallery in Milwaukee, MN

1995 - Parness shows his work at solo exhibition Charles Parness Paintings at the Vermont Wax Words & Museum Store in Manchester, VT

1995 - Parness shows his work at solo exhibition Faces, the Consequences at the Rockford Art Museum in Rockport, IL

A man with glasses and a beard takes a selfie in front of a colorful self portrait of him wearing a hat with a frog in his hand.

2002 - Parness is awarded the Andrew Carnegie Prize for Painting from the National Academy of Design

2002 - 2011 Parness returns to the Marie Walsh Sharpe Art Foundation Summer Seminar in Colorado Springs, CO

2006 - Charles marries longtime partner Janet Fish at their home in Vermont

2009 - Parness is an artist-in-residence at the Marie Walsh Sharpe Art Foundation in Colorado Springs, CO

2008 - Parness shows his work at solo exhibition I Am What I Am at the Korn Gallery at Drew University in Madison, NH

2010 - Parness is awarded the Harry Watrous Prize for Painting from the National Academy of Design

2015 - Parness shows his work at solo exhibition Charles Parness: I yi I at the Armory Art Center inWest Palm Beach, FL, see details here.