John E. Dowell Jr.

John Edward Dowell Jr. (born 1941) is an American printmaker, painter, and educator. He was a professor of printmaking at the Tyler School of Art at Temple University in Philadelphia.

Life and education Dowell was born on March 25, 1941, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and grew up in a housing project there. As a child, he explored art with his brother by copying the work in Lone Ranger comics. Dowell studied at the Tyler School of Art at Temple University (now Tyler School of Art and Architecture), where he was mentored by ceramist Rudolf Staffel. He mastered his printmaking skills at the Tamarind Institute in Los Angeles, California, where he worked as a senior printer. While visiting Bahia, Brazil in 1988, Dowell explored interest in traditional African religions. He later converted to the voodoo religion, but later was defrocked from the Voodoo priesthood.

Dowell is well known for works keyed to music. His works are featured in many collections, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Dowell also recorded photographic images of the President's House archaeological site.

Dowell has received many awards for his work, including the James Van Der Zee award from the Brandywine Workshop, and grants from the National Endowment for the Arts.