Name

John Dowie

Other names

Dowie, John Stuart.

JSD [in monogram].

Culture

Australian

Gender

Male

Birth date

15 January 1915

Birth place

Prospect, South Australia, Australia View on map Close map

Death date

19 March 2008

Death Place

Adelaide, South Australia, Australia View on map Close map

Movements

Middle East 1941-43; Europe 1950-53

Occupations

Art teacher | Artist (painter) | Artist (portrait) | Printmaker | Sculptor

Summary

Worked: Australia (SA). Linocuts, Monotypes

NGA IRN

18297

Context

Australia

Address

• 1988
  28 Gurney, Road, Dulwich, South Australia, Australia

Biography

John Dowie studied architecture at the University of Adelaide from 1936 to 1940, and painting at the South Australian School of Art with Ivor Francis and Marie Tuck between 1925 and 1930. In 1935 he had a linocut include in the student magazine Phoenix. He was a member of the South Australian Group 9. During WW2 he served in Palestine, North Africa and New Guinea and later worked with Lyndon Dadswell in the Military History section of the Department of War Records. In 1950 he travelled to UK and Europe studying in London at the John Cass College of Art then at the Florence Academy in Italy from 1951 to 1952.

In 1954 he joined the South Australian School of Art as a lecturer, staying until 1962. He travelled extensively throughout the 1960s. His major production from this period was sculpture. His print output has been limited to linocuts done mostly in the 1930s and 1940s. He contributed eight linocuts to Phoenix in 1935 and ’36. and a linocut for the book Cultural Cross-section published in 1941. He has also produced monotypes.

Gregory Heath and Roger Butler, Australian artist-printmakers 1870-1970. Canberra, 26 November 2025.

Last Updated

25 Nov 2025