Reception

with the Artist: John McDowell III ’68

“Abstracts by John McDowell ’68: On the Occasion of the 2023 Reunion”

Friday, June 9, at 5 p.m. | Burgin Center for the Arts

John began exhibiting his artwork in 2021 and has since realized increasing success. His solo exhibit, “Abstracts by John McDowell,” has been shown at several venues in the Chambersburg, PA, area, and one piece has been selected for publication by the online international arts magazine, Artistonish , for its February 2023 edition. Most recently, four of his works were chosen as part of the digital exhibit at Booth 107 at Art Expo New York 2023, where they will be offered as large-scale (59” x 43”) digitally-altered museum quality giclée canvas prints.

John describes his artwork as abstract and form shifting. A recent review by Anne Finucane of the Chambersburg Council for the Arts reflects this creative process: “The ink-on-paper drawings of John McDowell are complex and creative. While it is not uncommon to find this medium used to create dense and intricate images, these are varied and creative, combining both geometric shapes and organic forms. The images flow from nearly, but not quite, realistic architectural forms to curving, abstract lines, yielding overall designs that tease the eye and confound the brain.”

About the Artist

A graduate of Hampshire College, John is a self-taught graphic artist who began his career as a rock drummer in his early 20s, touring fraternity houses and clubs with his band in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. He later worked on Wall Street, where he founded his own firm in 1985. In the early 1990s, he was injured in a car accident and found he could no longer work. Therefore, he left New York City and retired to his hometown of Chambersburg, PA, where his ancestors settled in the 1770s.