Born in western Pennsylvania “mid century,” Ed Kowalski earned his B. A. in philosophy at Duquesne University, Pittsburgh.
He believes the philosophy studies have helped in giving his work focus, direction, and meaning.
He has been an exhibiting artist since 1972 at art shows across much of the United States, and his artwork can be found in collections in more than twenty states and in Canada and Great Britain.
Since 1973 he has lived in Missouri.
In 1983 he served as President of St. Louis County Art Association.
He was an Exhibit Coordinator for Queeny Park Art Fairs, St. Louis, for approximately ten years.

A unique limited palette of only four pigments is used in the creation of acrylic paintings that possess a wide range of apparent color and a distinctive look of light and atmosphere.

Ed Kowalski’s love for photography dates back to the 1964 New York Worlds Fair, but he began publicly exhibiting photos in 2000.
Many of his images are initially film-based, using equipment from an extensive collection of cameras and accessories, most now considered antiques. These images are converted to digital form before printing. Whether film or digital in origin, he prints the final images digitally on archival materials.

Sometimes he shows one of the two media, sometimes both.