Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art

About this Work

John Dowell chose abstraction to evoke the rhythm, melody, harmony, color (timbre), and texture—as well as the emotive power—found in music. He gained national attention in the 1970s for his “sound images” inspired by the avant-garde musical compositions of John Cage and African American music, particularly jazz. More than merely visual, his calligraphic marks set against a blank background were meant as musical notations, which could be played improvisationally. Although Dowell and his Visual Music Ensemble presented numerous concerts based on his works, it is not known if this particular image was ever performed. The Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art also has a waterolor "sound image" by Dowell (Eskenazi Museum of Art 89.17).