Artist Statement

The Mezzotint is an extraordinarily time consuming process, but meditative and highly satisfying to me. Using only the pressure of my hand on the scraping tool, I can imbue simple still life objects – drapery, tools, mushrooms – with a reserved strength and beauty that I obtain in no other medium. The slow nature of the process invites distillation. Light and shadow transform the seemingly immutable, and the sanctity of everyday life is revealed. Somewhere along the way psychological states of mind reveal themselves and my outer and inner worlds connect.

EDUCATION

1978-80 MA in Fine Art, Goddard College Graduate Program in Europe
1974-75 Graduate Program in Printmaking Royal College of Art, London
1967-72 BA in Fine Art University of California, Santa Cruz

SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2007 “Mezzotints and Recent Paintings”, Davidson Galleries, Seattle, Washington
2005 “Regional Paintings”, YWCA, Berkeley, California
2003 “Recent Paintings”, Bonnafont Gallery, San Francisco, California
2002 Paintings”, West Wing Gallery, Sanchez Art Center, Pacifica, California
2001 “Twenty-five Years of Mezzotints”, Annex Galleries, Santa Rosa, California
1997 “Recent Paintings”, 550 California Street, San Francisco
1995 “Mezzotints”, On The Wall Gallery, Medford, Oregon
1993 Ebert Gallery, San Francisco, ten year survey
1992 Ebert Gallery, San Francisco
1989 Citadel Print Center, San Jose, California
1986 Allport Gallery, San Francisco
1984 Annex Galleries, Santa Rosa, California
1980 Luz Gallery, Manila, Philippines
1978 Richard Demarco Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland
1977 AIR Gallery, London

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2007 'Art of the Mezzotint' The Ren Brown Collection, Bodega Bay CA
2006 Galleria, International School of Painting, Drawing, Montecastello di Vibio, Italy
LAPS juried members, Creative Arts Center, Burbank, California
Members, Royal Society of Painer-Printmakers, Bankside Gallery, London
“Impressions 2006”, Sebastopol Center for the Arts, Sebastopol, California
2005 “Dwellings”, Municipal Art Gallery, Los Angeles, California Members, Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers, Bankside Gallery, London “Contemporary California Mezzotints”, Collector’s Gallery, Oakland Museum North American Print Biennale, Emmanuel College, Boston, Massachusetts International Miniature Print Exhibition, Center for Contemporary Printmaking, Norwalk, Connecticut
2004 Prints, Stewart Gallery, Boise, Idaho
48th National Print Exhibition, Hunterdon Museum of Art, Clinton, New Jersey
Members, Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers, Bankside Galleries, London
“Originals ‘04”, Mall Galleries, London
Anne Bradford Gallery, Healdsburg, California
2003 U.S.A. Prints 2003, Springfield Museum of Art, Springfield, Missouri North American Print Biennale, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts LAPS 17th National Print Exhibition, Armory Center for the Arts, Pasadena, California Prints, Stewart Gallery, Boise, Idaho
2002 “Works on Paper”, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge “National Small Works”, Washington Printmakers, Washington D.C. “Impressions” Sebastopol Center for the Arts, Sebastopol, California “Pacific Prints”, Pacific Art League, Palo Alto, California
2001 “Vanishing Landmarks”, 3 painters, Quicksilver Mine Co., Sebastopol, California Pacific Rim International Print Exhibition, University of Hawaii, Hilo, Hawaii “Arts on Fire”, paintings, Sanchez Art Center, Pacifica, California “Between Light & Shadow”, the Gary Bettis Collection, Boise Art Museum, Idaho
2000 “Day of the Dead”, A Street Gallery, Santa Rosa, California 11th National Florida Printmakers Exhibition, New World School, Miami
1999 “Mezzotints”, Vorpal Gallery, San Francisco, California 43rd National Print Exhibition, Hunterdon Museum of Art, Clinton, New Jersey
1998 “Treasures”, Bradford Smock Gallery, San Francisco Mezzotints from the collection of Derby Fine Arts, Chicago Holland, Michigan Amsterdam Art Exhibition, Fort Mason, San Francisco “International Mezzotints”, Davidson Galleries, Seattle, Washington LAPS 15th National Print Exhibition, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles
1997 “Small Works”, California Museum of Art, Santa Rosa “Visions”, paintings, Bradford Gallery, San Anselmo, California “Resolutions”, paintings, Bradford Gallery, San Anselmo, California
1996 Kala Institute, Oakland, California “Landscapes - Under a Foot”, Bradford Gallery, San Anselmo, California 'Mezzotint, Art of Darkness', New Orleans Museum of Art, Louisiana
1995 U.C. Santa Cruz Printmakers Pajaro Valley Gallery, Watsonville, California
1994 'Taking Flight' Patricia Stewart Gallery, Napa, California 'New Traditions: Contemporary Mezzotints', curated by Carol Wax Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois
1993 “Landscapes”, California Museum of Art, Santa Rosa “West Coast Edition Printmakers”, Claudia Chapline Gallery, Stinson Beach, California “Taking Flight”, Califia Books, San Francisco
1992 Summer Exhibition, Ebert Gallery, San Francisco “Mezzotints: Yesterday and Today”, Stanford University Art Museum “Black and White”, Ebert Gallery, San Francisco “The Saga Show”, Portland Art Museum, Oregon
1990 'The Mezzotint', Sylvan Cole Gallery, New York “The Making of a Print', Delaware Center for the Contemporary Arts, Wilmington
1989 'From Dark to Light: Contemporary Mezzotints', Sacred Heart Schools, Menlo Park, California 'Exemplary Contempor'y'' The Eloise Pickard Smith Gallery, University of California, Santa Cruz
1987 Prints”, World Print Council, San Francisco 'North of the Gate', Sonoma State University Gallery, Rohnert Park
1986 Drawing: A Classical Continuum', Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery Frechen International Print Biennale, Frechen, W. Germany
1985 Drawings, Marilyn Pink, Los Angeles Drawings, Allport Associates, San Francisco
1984 New Gallery Artists, Soker-Kaseman Gallery, San Francisco “International Mezzotints”, Pratt Manhatten Center Gallery, New York International Mezzotints, Oxford Gallery, Oxford, England
1983 'Recent Acquisitions', Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts, Palace of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco
Phelan Art Award Recipients, World Print Council, San Francisco Frechen International Print Biennale, Frechen, W. Germany
1982 'Mezzotints', World Print Council, San Francisco
'Subjective Realities', Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts, Palace of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco Mini Print International, Cadaques, Spain Cabo Frio International Print Biennale, Brazil
1981 “Heads or Tails”, Newcastle Upon Tyne and Neal Street Gallery, London
International Exhibition of Small Graphic Forms, Lodz, Poland
National Print Workshop Exhibition, Crescent Art Gallery, Scarborough, England
Seoul International Print Biennale, Seoul, Korea
Dealer’s Choice, Artefact Gallery, London
1980 International Biella Prize for Prints, Biella, Italy
Cracow International Print Biennale, Cracow, Poland
World Print III, and traveling exhibition, San Francisco
Listowel International Print Biennale, Listowel, Ireland

SELECTED AWARDS
2006 Residency at Montecastello di Vibio, Umbria, Italy
Merit Award, “Impressions”, Sebastopol Center for the Arts, Sebastopol
2005 Residency at Moulin à Nef, Auvillar, France
2004 Residency at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Amherst, Virginia
Elected to the Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers, London, U.K.
2003 Purchase Award, LAPS 17th National Print Exhibition, Pasadena, California
2001 Jurors Award, Pacific Rim International Print Exhibition, University of Hawaii, Hilo Purchase Award
43rd Print Exhibition, Hunterdon Museum of Art, Clinton, New Jersey
1997 Barnhart Memorial Award, “Small Works”, California Museum of Art, Santa Rosa
1987 The Jacqueline and Jay Zemel Patron Award,The Print Club 63rd Annual, Philadelphia
Prize, The Print Club 59th Annual Competition, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1983 Phelan Art Award for Printmaking, San Francisco
1980 Purchase Award, Barcham Green Printmaking Competition, U.K.
1979 Purchase Award, Cleveland International Drawing Biennale
Purchase Award, U.K. Award, Korean Miniature Print Exhibition, Space Gallery, Seoul, Korea., England.
1978 Arts Council of Great Britain, U.K.
1976-77 Greenshields Foundation Award, Canada
1975-76 National Endowment for the Arts, Individual Artist’s Fellowship

TEACHING
1983-2006 Santa Rosa Junior College, California
1981, 1983 University of California, Santa Cruz
1981-82 San Francisco State University
1978-80 Brighton University, England, BA and Graduate studens
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

2006 “Printmakers, The Directory”, The Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers, A & C Black, London.
“Sebastopol Impressions 2006” by Dan Taylor, Press Democrat, March 23, 2006.
2004 Printmaking Today London vol. 13, No. 2, Summer 2004.
2002 “New Sanchez Exhibit”, Pacifica Tribune, Pacifica, California, Feb 2.
2001 “Holly Downing at the Annex”, by Sandy Thompson, Artweek San Jose, CA, vol. 32, #10, October. Holly Downing 25 Years of Mezzotints
1975-2000 Illustrated catalogue raisonne forward Robert Flynn Johnson.
1999 The Sunday Star-Ledge, review by Dan Bischoff, Clinton, New Jersey, June 20
1996 Mezzotint, Art of Darkness catalogue Carol Wax & Earl Retif New Orleans Museum of Art, Louisiana.
1992 “Contemporary Printmaking” Artweek Oakland, California vol. 23, #27, November 5.
1990 The Mezzotint: History and Technique Carol Wax, Harry N. Abrams, Inc., New York.
1984 'International Mezzotint Competition', The Print Collector's Newsletter Vol. XV, No. 4 Sept.-Oct.
1983 'Curator Goes Out on a Limb' by Thomas Albright San Francisco Chronicle San Francisco May 26. 'The Phelan Awards' by Frank Cebulski Artweek Oakland, California vol. 14, #28, August 27.
1982 '7 Artists Who Are Drawing Attention' by Al Morch San Francisco Examiner San Francisco June 7. Subjective Realities catalogue Robert Flynn Johnson Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.
1981 Artists' Views of the Decade 1970-80 Art International London No. 22, March.
1978 'Five Views of Nature and The Nature of Life' by Leslie Myers Artweek, Oakland, CA vol. 9, #12, June.

SELECTED PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts, San Francisco
University of Reading, England
University of Washington, Seattle
Art Exhibitions Bureau, Lodz, Poland
Arts Council of Great Britain, London
Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, England
Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris
Califia Books, San Francisco, California
Chiba Art Museum. Chiba, Japan
City of Bath Art Gallery, Bath, England
Clydesdale Bank, Glasgow, Scotland
Continental Bank, Chicago
Department of the Environment, London
Derby Fine Arts, Ltd, Chicago, Illinois
Dundee Art Gallery, Scotland
Hawaii State Art Museum, Honolulu
Johnson & Johnson Corporate Art Collection
Kaiser Permanente Hospital, San Rafael, California
Luz Gallery, Manila, Philippines
Northern Arts Association, England
Nakasatsunai Art Museum, Hokkaido, Japan
Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon
Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers, London
Scottish National Gallery of Art, Edinburgh, Scotland
Selkapet Kunst pa Arbeidsplassen, Norway
University of California, Santa Barbara
South East Arts Association, England
Southampton University, England
Space Gallery, Seoul, Korea
Stanford Museum of Art, California
Sutton College, London
University of California, Santa Cruz
University of Hawaii, Hilo
Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Amherst
Victoria & Albert Museum, London