Title: Playful Color
Medium: Collage
Size: 24" x 18"
This collage painting will be available at the
Pence Gallery in Davis California
August 25 - Sept 19, 2009
Pence Gallery Auction
212 D Street
Davis, CA 95616
http://www.pencegallery.org/
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Pence Gallery
Title: Playful Color
Medium: Collage
Size: 24" x 18"
This collage painting will be available at the
Pence Gallery in Davis California
August 25 - Sept 19, 2009
Pence Gallery Auction
212 D Street
Davis, CA 95616
http://www.pencegallery.org/
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
new art at Hang It Up Gallery
Come on up the hill and visit Hang It Up Gallery, where I've just delivered some new collage paintings from my Stepping-Up Series...
Shoes Shoes and more Shoes!
Title: Fred's (Astaire) Dancing Shoes
(Stepping-Up Series)
Medium: Collage
Size: 24" x 18"
Don't worry, Ginger Rogers' shoes are there too...
Hang It Up Gallery
Don't worry, Ginger Rogers' shoes are there too...
Hang It Up Gallery
4359 Town Center Blvd. Ste 113
El Dorado Hills, CA 95762
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Dallas Museum of Biblical Art Acquires My Art
Artist: Eileen Downes
Title: Open Door Policy
Size: 72" x 30" x 12" (36" opened)
I am very pleased to announce that the Museum of Biblical Art in Dallas, Texas is acquiring my conceptual art piece titled, Open Door Policy, from my Visions of Heaven Series for their permanent collection. The nationally recognized museum suffered a terrible loss of their fine art holdings in a fire in 2005. Since that devastating fire, they have rebuilt the museum and are scheduled to re-open in the fall of 2009 with a brand new collection of Biblical Themed artwork. Open Door Policy is a three dimensional interactive collage / assemblage where the viewer is invited to actually touch and open the antique door, revealing the collage tapestry of visions of heaven.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
My art at the Salmagundi Art Club, New York City
Artist: Eileen Downes
Title: Marriage Fruit
Medium: Wax Collage
Size: 16" x 12"
I'm pleased to announce that my conceptual wax collage piece titled, Marriage Fruit, will be exhibited at the acclaimed Salmagundi Art Club in New York,
May 11 - 29, 2009, as part of the National Association of Women Artists 120th Celebration.
The Salmagundi Art Club originally formed as the Salmagundi Sketch Club in 1871, and used to meet in Johnathan Scott Hartley's studio. Then in 1917 a landmark mid-nineteenth century brownstone building located at 47 Fifth Avenue in Greenwich Village became the home for the gallery-club. Following a tradition of 138 years, the Salmagundi Art Club continues to serve as a center for fine artists from New York and around the country providing art exhibitions, classes, demonstrations and art auctions throughout the year.
For a virtual tour of the Salmagundi Art Club Gallery
click here:Salmagundi Gallery Tour
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Article in Sacramento News and Review
In today's Sacramento News and Review there is a nice article by Emily Scott focusing on the work of 4 Sacramento artists (including me) who use recycled or reclaimed materials in artmaking. See the article below:
Garbage in, art out
Talking trash with four Sacramento artists
By Emily Scott
“Carol’s Lucky Shoes” by Eileen Downes, recycled-media collage.
“What a piece of trash!” That phrase uttered aloud might get you kicked out of an art gallery right on your tuchis. However, for four Sacramento artists who use old magazines, scrap metal, scavenged wood and other discarded objects in their creations, such words would undoubtedly be received as high praise. “I love walking through the scrap yard and seeing all this discarded waste and knowing that I will take some of it out of the landfill and create a beautiful sculpture with it,” says Kristen Hoard, sounding like a kid in a candy store. Hoard creates sculptures from discarded metal; her favorite recycled piece is a jellyfish made from the bottom of a Weber barbecue. “Whenever I tell anyone that it’s a Weber barbecue, they immediately see what it was originally and are amazed at what it turned into,” she says. In the studio, Hoard uses an environmentally friendly alcohol-based gel to heat up some of her sculptures. “The gel provides a nice warm fire element without the smoke and soot going into the environment,” she emphasized. Any leftover scrap metal is used in other projects, both her own and the artists she shares her studio with, so there’s very little waste. Jill Stafford, a collage and mixed-media artist, also creates works from recycled materials, such as old cigarette boxes. She paints the exteriors, adds some collage pieces and, depending on the piece, she may design the inside of the box as well. “I love the idea that I can give this object designed to promote smoking a completely different life,” she explains. In addition to using old cigarette boxes, she often finds that the roadside is a veritable smorgasbord of treasures. She often discovers discarded paper with unique fonts and perfect weathering. “Our resources are becoming so incredibly limited, why not utilize as many alternative objects as you can?” she asks. That is just what painter and printmaker Andrew Littlefield does. He works at a print shop, where he finds old pallets, plates from printing presses, paper and metallic Mylar sheets that are a byproduct of the proofing process. “We all need to reduce, reuse, recycle,” he says. “I’m hoping to set an example in the way I’ve been working with garbage.” Lately, Littlefield has been making transfer prints from his travels on reclaimed plywood, then putting on the finishing touches with pencil and charcoal. Green art isn’t a passing phase for Andrew. He uses reclaimed materials because it’s his favorite medium. “I know it’s important for all of us to do everything we can to be as green as we can,” he says. “It’s our responsibility to the future and to the next generation. I can see the artist community leading the way.” Eileen Downes, a self-proclaimed layerist collage painter, used to work for an environmental engineering firm. She creates paintings using torn pages from old magazines as her palette, creating a rough-around-the-edges mosaic effect. “I work the image by adding and subtracting tonal values of paper until I create the desired effect,” she says. Downes took a momentary break from her work to broach the eternal debate surrounding art. “Art is a reflection of life, what is going on in the nation and the world,” she says. Which just might mean society is finally starting to clean up its act. With that said, go recycle this paper. Or give it to Downes.
Garbage in, art out
Talking trash with four Sacramento artists
By Emily Scott
“Carol’s Lucky Shoes” by Eileen Downes, recycled-media collage.
“What a piece of trash!” That phrase uttered aloud might get you kicked out of an art gallery right on your tuchis. However, for four Sacramento artists who use old magazines, scrap metal, scavenged wood and other discarded objects in their creations, such words would undoubtedly be received as high praise. “I love walking through the scrap yard and seeing all this discarded waste and knowing that I will take some of it out of the landfill and create a beautiful sculpture with it,” says Kristen Hoard, sounding like a kid in a candy store. Hoard creates sculptures from discarded metal; her favorite recycled piece is a jellyfish made from the bottom of a Weber barbecue. “Whenever I tell anyone that it’s a Weber barbecue, they immediately see what it was originally and are amazed at what it turned into,” she says. In the studio, Hoard uses an environmentally friendly alcohol-based gel to heat up some of her sculptures. “The gel provides a nice warm fire element without the smoke and soot going into the environment,” she emphasized. Any leftover scrap metal is used in other projects, both her own and the artists she shares her studio with, so there’s very little waste. Jill Stafford, a collage and mixed-media artist, also creates works from recycled materials, such as old cigarette boxes. She paints the exteriors, adds some collage pieces and, depending on the piece, she may design the inside of the box as well. “I love the idea that I can give this object designed to promote smoking a completely different life,” she explains. In addition to using old cigarette boxes, she often finds that the roadside is a veritable smorgasbord of treasures. She often discovers discarded paper with unique fonts and perfect weathering. “Our resources are becoming so incredibly limited, why not utilize as many alternative objects as you can?” she asks. That is just what painter and printmaker Andrew Littlefield does. He works at a print shop, where he finds old pallets, plates from printing presses, paper and metallic Mylar sheets that are a byproduct of the proofing process. “We all need to reduce, reuse, recycle,” he says. “I’m hoping to set an example in the way I’ve been working with garbage.” Lately, Littlefield has been making transfer prints from his travels on reclaimed plywood, then putting on the finishing touches with pencil and charcoal. Green art isn’t a passing phase for Andrew. He uses reclaimed materials because it’s his favorite medium. “I know it’s important for all of us to do everything we can to be as green as we can,” he says. “It’s our responsibility to the future and to the next generation. I can see the artist community leading the way.” Eileen Downes, a self-proclaimed layerist collage painter, used to work for an environmental engineering firm. She creates paintings using torn pages from old magazines as her palette, creating a rough-around-the-edges mosaic effect. “I work the image by adding and subtracting tonal values of paper until I create the desired effect,” she says. Downes took a momentary break from her work to broach the eternal debate surrounding art. “Art is a reflection of life, what is going on in the nation and the world,” she says. Which just might mean society is finally starting to clean up its act. With that said, go recycle this paper. Or give it to Downes.
Monday, February 02, 2009
Saturday, December 06, 2008
Merry Christmas to all....
Wishing everyone a blessed Christmas Season.
Artist: Eileen Downes
Medium: Collage of torn magazine papers
Size: 18" x 24"
Saturday, November 01, 2008
Art at Women's and Children's Hospital
Artist: Eileen Downes
Title: Fun Day at the Park
Size: whole piece 20" x 60"
This is a very small part of the large commissioned piece that is going in the Roseville Kaiser Women's and Children's Hospital in Roseville, California. The piece is made from many layers of torn magazine papers; it is not painted. It shows a family of five: mom, dad, boy, two girls, and a dog.
Friday, August 08, 2008
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
National Biennial 2008
Title: Visions of Heaven No. 3
Medium: Collage
Size: 15" x 12"
I am pleased that my art from Visions Of Heaven Series was selected for the National Biennial 2008 at the Peninsula Fine Art Center in Newport News, Virginia. The juror is Mark Richard Leach, who is the director of the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art in Winston-Salem, NC. The show will include works from 87 artists from 17 states.
Here are the details of the exhibition:
National Biennial 2008
September 13 - November 2, 2008
Peninsula Fine Art Center
101 Museum Drive
Newport News VA
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
See the Paste-Up Show
Now you can see images on-line from the Paste-Up Invitational show currently on exhibition in Lowell, Massachusetts. Click http://www.paste-up.com/exhibit2008.html to see the artwork from all of the invited artists including me. 25 artists were chosen for this interesting show from all over the world including Belgium and New York City. I'm sure you will notice the diversity and fine style of the techniques shown. It is a pleasure to have had my exhibition piece titled, Marriage Fruit, selected. It is a collage of found papers, acrylic paint, and tinted bees wax. It has a companion piece titled, The X-Man. I have included photos of both pieces here. I wish I could have been at the opening reception, but that would have been quite a long trip for me. Click http://www.paste-up.com/reception2008.html to see photos of the opening reception. 
Title: Marriage Fruit
Title: The X-Man
Monday, June 09, 2008
NMagazine Article
Artist: Eileen Downes
Title: Spring Peaches
Signed Limited Edition Giclee prints available
I'm happy to annouce that NMagazine has featured my artwork, Spring Peaches, on their June cover along with an accompanying article about my work. You can read the article on-line at http://www.nmag.net/
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
New Work
I just wanted to share some of my new pieces from the American River Series that will soon be a part of the public art collection at University of California, Davis, Medical Center located in Sacramento CA. I enjoyed making these pieces reflective of the American River Parkway in different seasons. I frequently walk along the bike trail or levee there and often take photographs from which to work later in my studio.
Seasons on the American River No. 1
Seasons on the American River No. 3
Seasons on the American River No. 1
Seasons on the American River No. 3
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Thursday, April 24, 2008
"Oh My"....Bees in the studio!
Yes, that's right, there are bees in my studio. 
It seems that with all this lovely spring weather we are having lately the honey bees have decided to make my studio chimney their new home. I started noticing one or two bees, then ten or so, and then soon there were hundreds of them flying around my studio. The "bee man" came to remove the hive (he will take it to a bee keeper) and spray an ecologically non-toxic repellent to discourage any future nesting there. He said it was a hive of about 12,000 bees, yep 12,000! Wow! Who knows, maybe my next series will be about Bee's. They are really quite interesting creatures. Funny thing is that I often use bee's wax in my collage paintings...if only I could have thought of a way to harvest the wax and keep the bees....
It seems that with all this lovely spring weather we are having lately the honey bees have decided to make my studio chimney their new home. I started noticing one or two bees, then ten or so, and then soon there were hundreds of them flying around my studio. The "bee man" came to remove the hive (he will take it to a bee keeper) and spray an ecologically non-toxic repellent to discourage any future nesting there. He said it was a hive of about 12,000 bees, yep 12,000! Wow! Who knows, maybe my next series will be about Bee's. They are really quite interesting creatures. Funny thing is that I often use bee's wax in my collage paintings...if only I could have thought of a way to harvest the wax and keep the bees....
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
For Golfers
for golf enthusiasts....
This Artist Signed Limited Edition Giclee Print
titled, "Golfer"
is available for bidding
Monday, 5/19/08
at the Granite Bay Golf Club
The First Tee Invitational
9600 Golf Club Drive, Granite Bay, CA 95746
This Artist Signed Limited Edition Giclee Print
titled, "Golfer"
is available for bidding
Monday, 5/19/08
at the Granite Bay Golf Club
The First Tee Invitational
9600 Golf Club Drive, Granite Bay, CA 95746
Saturday, February 23, 2008
What is Good Art?
So, What makes any one particular piece of art good? What makes one painting better than another? We could discuss all of the technical, compositional, asthetic components of art here (but that could easily be learned in Art School), but then we would miss out on the most important definition of good art. That would be the intensity of the emotional response the viewer has when observing a piece of art. The personal response is just that...personal. it is entirely subjective, and the very most influential reason a piece of art is good. It is also the very most influential reason a person buys a particular work of art. I tell my collectors, and customers for whom I make custom commissioned artwork to pay close attention to their first impression about the piece, their first reaction. If it is a reaction they want, then that is the piece of art for them.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Collage Paintings by Eileen Downes unveiled at Kaiser Grand Opening
Be sure to see Eileen's artwork in the Labor and Delivery floor at the
Kaiser Modesto Grand Opening Celebration
Coming in October 2008
Title: Un-Tied Shoes
from the collection of Kaiser Modesto
Medium: Collage
Size: 18" x 24"
Kaiser Hospital
4601 Dale Road
corner of Kierman and Dale
Modesto, California 95350
Modesto Kaiser Hospital
Kaiser Modesto Grand Opening Celebration
Coming in October 2008
Title: Un-Tied Shoes
from the collection of Kaiser Modesto
Medium: Collage
Size: 18" x 24"
Kaiser Hospital
4601 Dale Road
corner of Kierman and Dale
Modesto, California 95350
Modesto Kaiser Hospital
Friday, February 01, 2008
in Art Business News Magazine
Below is the information printed in Art Business News:
Issue Date: ABN - January 08, Posted On: 1/22/2008 ORIGINALS
“Carol’s Lucky Shoes” 20th STREET ART GALLERY announces the release of “Carol’s Lucky Shoes” by EILEEN DOWNES from her “Stepping-Up Series.” The original collage on paper is sized at 18 x 24 inches and comes matted and framed for a retail price of $450. This collage painting as well as others from the series are available at 20th Street Art Gallery. Call 916-930-0500; visit www.20art.net or www.eileendownes.com for more information.
Issue Date: ABN - January 08, Posted On: 1/22/2008 ORIGINALS
“Carol’s Lucky Shoes” 20th STREET ART GALLERY announces the release of “Carol’s Lucky Shoes” by EILEEN DOWNES from her “Stepping-Up Series.” The original collage on paper is sized at 18 x 24 inches and comes matted and framed for a retail price of $450. This collage painting as well as others from the series are available at 20th Street Art Gallery. Call 916-930-0500; visit www.20art.net or www.eileendownes.com for more information.
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