Lee Dowling to be featured artist at March LCA/LAI exhibit

 

[March 07, 2019] 

LINCOLN 

For their March presentation, Logan County Arts is pleased to host a retrospective exhibit of works by local artist Lee Dowling. An opening reception will be held on Thursday, March 14 from 5 to 8 pm at the Lincoln Art Institute, 112 S. Mclean St., Lincoln. The show will include artworks from throughout Lee’s career, representing the artistic journey of this established and talented artist. While several pieces are from private collections, some paintings will be for sale.

Lee earned her Bachelor and Master’s degrees in art, as well as an honorary Doctorate from MacMurray College, her alma mater. In addition to showing in regional galleries, she gave private lessons and taught art courses for many years at Lincoln College. After retiring, she relocated to Naples, Florida, where she continued to paint and was an active member of the local art community. One of her largest commissions during that time was to complete a set of 100 paintings to decorate a new hotel in Naples. She now lives in Lincoln and is still painting.

Though Lee is accomplished in oils, pastel, acrylic and watercolor, she currently considers acrylics to be her preferred medium. Her favorite subject to paint is faces, but other recurring themes include flowers, tropical birds, and waterside scenes.

Especially in works done in Florida, her treatment of light is reminiscent of the Impressionists, but at one point she decided to study hyperrealism, just to see how she liked the style.

She mastered the technique but wasn’t satisfied with the meticulous method and feels that the experience affected her painting approach for a while.

However, she notes, “I feel that lately I am becoming freer with my colors. It’s hard to explain, but somehow the colors are more spontaneous.”

The artist is not afraid of large canvases, and some of her most striking and colorful works are large statement pieces. Nevertheless, each is unique and quite unforgettable, a strong contrast to the boring and repetitive images of so-called “sofa art.”

After the opening reception, the Dowling exhibit will be available for viewing until April 10 by chance or appointment. If interested, call gallery owner Moses Pinkerton at 217-651-8355. Also available at the March 14 opening will be information on the April, 2019 exhibit, in which LCA members will show works on the theme “Green Inspirations”. Non-members can also show artworks in this exhibit by paying a small display fee. Anyone interested in doing so should contact Pinkerton for more information.

[Pamela Moriearty]