Manka Dowling Sold at Auction Prices

b. 1937 -

Manka Dowling is active/lives in Poland. Manka Dowling is known for painting.

1961-1967
Studies painting at Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw under Professors Cybis and Ziemski. She supports herself throughout this time by designing and making textiles for "Wzor" Arts and Crafts Co-operative.

1967
Receives MA (Honours) degree n Painting.

1967-1970
Continues to design for "Wzor" whilst aslo working as a graphic designer for the Foreign Trade Fairs & Exhibitions company in Warsaw.

1970
Arrives in England and enters the advertising industry as a graphic designer; begins to work on paintings for her first solo exhibition.

1972
Exhibits at Woodstock Gallery the first series of post fauvist erotic paintings.

1973
A visit to Greece brings about a change in form, colour and shade; begins to create three dimensional paintings which did not receive acclaim by gallery owners until late 1970s.

1979
Joins graphic arts studio at the Hounslow College of Art. And creates numerous silk screens and etchings based on theatrical themes.

1980
Solo Exhibition at the New Talent Store receives good critical reception.

1980
Solo exhibition at UN IMCO Gallery in London; abandons applied graphics for painting full-time.

1981
Following travels in Italy, especially to Florence and Sienna, the artist returns to working with colour.

1984
Involvement with three dimensional painting continues; develops an interest in holograms which leads to an exhibition of holographic paintings in Monte Carlo.

1986-1987
Three dimensional paintings are abandoned for good in favour of figurative forms and colour.

1987
Solo exhibition at the Jabolonsky gallery in London. The artist`s first visit to the Museum of Modern Art. And Guggenheim Museum in New York acts as a catalyst in her search for interpretation of light. The colour palette becomes simpler while use of light gains paramount importance. The artist runs painting and drawing courses at the Spring Grove Adult Education Centre in West London.

1986-1995
Runs an art. Studio at the West Middlesex Hospital in London where she creates a series of murals.

1993-2000
Runs painting course courses at Waterman`s Art. Centre in West London.

2000
Expedition to Sinai Peninsula and diving in Red Sea. Under water makes a big impression on Mañka and she produces a lot of work depicting, in almost abstract style, what she saw.

2000
Takes a special course on painting presentation and exhibition for West London artists.

2000&2001
Successful two artist shows in Fusion Studio, Soho, London.

2001
Takes part in Polish Artist's Exhibition "Water" at Posk Gallery in West London.

2005-2007
In 2005 she returned to Poland with her husband John Parkin, were he was working as advisor to Polish Ministry of Agriculture. In 2006 she organised her and her artists friends exhibition in Traffic Gallery in Warsaw, Poland. Her paintings are changing - they become more simplified, rules of perspective abandoned but her colours more vibrant and lot of visual jokes are introduced; "My holiday in Turkey" or" Plain air". Also in 2007 Manka had a major exhibition of her works at the Palace Kordegarda Gallery in Lazienki, Warsaw, Poland. She had an individual exhibition in 2005, in 2007 at the Museum de la Cultura in Chetumal, Mexico, and took part in group exhibitions in Mexico, St. Petersburg, Syria and Sweden.

2008
Along with other Polish artists, Manka Dowling dedicated her painting to Church of St. Mary of Guadelupe, to be a part of Station of a cross. The painting depicted St. Simon.

2009
In 2009 she and her husband built a house and a big studio in the border of Bialowieza Forest in Poland, where she loves to paint. With the local government, she organised and took part in a group exhibition at the local gallery in Narewka (2011). She paints local characters and landscapes. But also is working on even bigger simplification of what she observes.

2010
From 2004 to 2010, she exhibited and participated in many events organised by Adi Art Gallery in Lodz in Poland.

2013
For her exhibition in Spiegel Salon in Berlin, she prepared a lot of new works and added them to her exhibitions in Mostra Gallery and Gallery (-1), Warsaw, Poland.