Thomas Downing

American, 1928-1985

Thomas Downing was born in Suffolk, Virginia. In 1950, after graduating from Pratt Institute in New York City, he received a grant from the Virginia Museum of Fine Art to study in Europe. Upon returning from Europe, he settled in Washington, DC to teach at Catholic University. In 1954 Downing became a friend of Kenneth Noland, whose life drawing course he attended. From 1955 to 1956 Downing shared a studio with Howard Mehring, another artist who came to be identified with the Washington Color School. Downing had his first one-man show at the Washington Workshop Center for the Arts in 1959. In 1959 Downing first began using the small dot in his work, a motif he explored fully into the 1970s. Downing’s position in the Washington Color School came from his consistent approach to color. The canvas was the receptacle of color, on which Downing often worked in tonal modulations of a hue. Downing developed shaped canvases in 1966 as a structural solution to his deeper consideration of the “spatial definition” of color. After first working in a parallelogram shape, Downing next worked in chevron-shaped canvases that examined the illusionistic qualities of color. He exhibited these works in a solo exhibition at the Corcoran Gallery in 1966-1967 and later at the Allan Stone Gallery in New York in 1967. Downing’s second series of shaped canvases titled Folds were created in 1968. In the Fold series he discovered a new effect of relief and spatial depth within a flat work that could be enhanced by color. The projections and folding in the Fold paintings suggest the paintings exist in a world without gravity. Downing exhibited in a group show at Jefferson Place Gallery in 1960 and had his first solo exhibition there in the spring of 1961. Downing had solo exhibitions in New York at Allan Stone Gallery in 1962, 1967, and 1968. He also had solo exhibition in New York at Stable Gallery in September 1963 and January 1965. In the early 1970s Downing had regular solo exhibitions at the Pyramid Galleries in DC. Downing taught at the Corcoran School of Art and Design, Washington, DC from 1965 to 1968. There he was influential for the next generation of DC color artists including Sam Gilliam. He moved to New York in 1970 and taught at the School of Visual Arts. He then accepted a position at the University of Houston, Texas in 1975. Around 1976, Downing moved to Provincetown where he continued to paint until his death in 1985. In 2007 Thomas Downing was included in Optic Nerve: Perceptual Art in the 1960s at the Columbus Museum of Art, Ohio and Lyrical Color: Morris Louis, Gene Davis, Kenneth Noland and the Washington Color School at the Phillips Collection, Washington, DC.

Creator: Thomas Downing

Thomas Downing Watercolor, 1958 "Washington Color School"

$2,000

Thomas Downing Watercolor, 1958 "Washington Color School"

By Thomas Downing

Located in Sharon, CT

Rare very early watercolor by this famous 'Washington D.C. Colorist'(from the group of Morris Louis, Kenneth Noland and Gene Davis), signed and dated L.L. 1958. Matted and framed in ...

Category

Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Thomas Downing

Materials

Paint

Drawing, Flemish School, 18th Century

$1,920Sale Price|20% Off

H 14.625 in W 18 in D 1 in

Drawing, Flemish School, 18th Century

Located in Kittery Point, ME

Ancient Ruins with Strollers. Brown wash and graphite.

Category

Mid-18th Century Dutch Neoclassical Antique Thomas Downing

Materials

Paper

1980s American School Style Interior Scene of a Sitting Room Watercolor Painting

$595

H 21 in W 17.5 in D 0.5 in

1980s American School Style Interior Scene of a Sitting Room Watercolor Painting

Located in Morristown, NJ

American School (20th c.), Interior scene, watercolor on paper, signed and dated "Wisner, '81" lower right. A charming, colorful and detailed representation of a beautiful room-scape. It makes me want to grab a good book and snuggle up by the fire. The framing is by The House of Heydenryk...

Category

1980s American American Classical Vintage Thomas Downing

Materials

Glass, Wood, Paint, Paper

orientalist watercolor

$170Sale Price|62% Off

H 13.39 in W 9.85 in D 1.19 in

orientalist watercolor

By Societé anonyme francaise

Located in TARBES, FR

Discover this magnificent orientalist watercolor, dating from the end of the 20th century. This masterpiece captures the vibrant and mysterious essence of the Orient through soft col...

Category

1990s Algerian Islamic Thomas Downing

Materials

Paper

19th C. Pair of Watercolors, American School

$2,437Sale Price / set|25% Off

H 15 in W 12.5 in D 1 in

19th C. Pair of Watercolors, American School

Located in Kittery Point, ME

Western Wild Birds, each monogrammed ES lower left. Watercolor on Paper.

Category

19th Century American Antique Thomas Downing

Materials

Paper

L. Meslay Group 4 French Etchings early 20th C. New York City & Washington D.C.

$185 / set

H 16 in W 12 in D 0.1 in

L. Meslay Group 4 French Etchings early 20th C. New York City & Washington D.C.

Located in Miami, FL

Four etchings by L. Meslay (French) of New York City buildings and one of the Capitol in Washington D.C. probably from the early 20th Century. Each with city locale and named buildi...

Category

Early 20th Century French Other Thomas Downing

Materials

Paper

Dorothy Dehner Watercolor "Maiden Aunts"

$7,500

H 18.25 in W 22.75 in D 1 in

Dorothy Dehner Watercolor "Maiden Aunts"

By Dorothy Dehner

Located in Long Island City, NY

Dorothy Dehner (1901-1994) was one of the most important women artists in the United States in the mid-century American abstraction movement (the MoMa in New York has more than a doz...

Category

1940s American Vintage Thomas Downing

Materials

Ink, Watercolor, Paper

Original Watercolor & Ink Cartoon by DB Donte, 1958

$295

H 8.5 in W 22.75 in D 0.63 in

Original Watercolor & Ink Cartoon by DB Donte, 1958

Located in Philadelphia, PA

Original Watercolor & Ink Cartoon "Caution Goafer Holes and Falling Rocks Ahead" signed DB Donte, 1958 "in original condition and frame" "frame needs to be replaced" "will look ama...

Category

1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Thomas Downing

Materials

Paper

Drawing, 17th Century Dutch School

$1,250

H 11.5 in W 14.125 in

Drawing, 17th Century Dutch School

Located in Kittery Point, ME

Drawing, Attributed to Bartholomeus Breenbergh (Deventer 1598-1657 Amsterdam). Ruins of an old fort on a hilltop inscribed 'A. no.2' black chalk, pen and brown ink, grey wash, pen ...

Category

18th Century and Earlier Dutch Antique Thomas Downing

Materials

Pen

Drawing, Ships, French School

$1,000Sale Price|20% Off

H 12.5 in W 15.75 in D 0.5 in

Drawing, Ships, French School

Located in Kittery Point, ME

Two Ships, one called Le Fromidable
Dated 20 mai 92, situated Rochefort

Category

19th Century French Antique Thomas Downing

Materials

Paper

Landscape with River Watercolor, Signed, French School, 19th Century

$1,200Sale Price|20% Off

H 12.375 in W 15.375 in D 1 in

Landscape with River Watercolor, Signed, French School, 19th Century

Located in Kittery Point, ME

Landscape with River, Signed in red L de N.

Category

19th Century French Antique Thomas Downing

Materials

Paper

orientalist watercolor 2

$170Sale Price|62% Off

H 13.39 in W 9.85 in D 1.19 in

orientalist watercolor 2

By Societé anonyme francaise

Located in TARBES, FR

Discover this magnificent orientalist watercolor, dating from the end of the 20th century. This masterpiece captures the vibrant and mysterious essence of the Orient through soft col...

Category

1990s Algerian Islamic Thomas Downing

Materials

Paper

Austrian School Artwork

$1,000

H 32 in W 25.5 in D 1 in

Austrian School Artwork

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Charcoal drawing by art student.

Category

1960s Austrian Vintage Thomas Downing

Materials

Paper

Thomas Downing furniture for sale on 1stDibs.

Thomas Downing furniture are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of paint and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Thomas Downing furniture, although beige editions of this piece are particularly popular. Many of the original furniture by Thomas Downing were created in the mid-century modern style in united states during the mid-20th century. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider furniture by Miriam Kubach, David Klein, and Raoul Pene du Bois. Prices for Thomas Downing furniture can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $4,000 and can go as high as $4,000, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $4,000.