Lot 272: EDWARD COWLEY ORIGINAL "IN YOUR NEW DIGS"

Original Pastel by Edward "Ed" Cowley (1925-2014) "In Your New Digs" painted in 2001. Inscribed to friends. Professionally Framed and Matted. In Frame measures 31 1/2"x26"x1". Weight 8 pds. PROVENANCE: A Private Altamont NY/Charleston SC Estate. Edward "Ed" Cowley (1925-2014) was a multi-disciplined artist who worked in two and three dimensions with paint, stained glass and metal. His images frequently depict rural towns-capes and are realized with a balance of abstraction, action painting and realism. He was educated at Albright Art School, Buffalo State College and earned his Master's of Fine Arts degree from Columbia University. In 1951 he joined the art faculty at the University of Albany, SUNY and served as head of the Art Department from 1955 to 1975. He ushered in a golden age at the University at Albany's art department as chair starting in the 1950s. He was instrumental in developing the Draper Gallery at the University of Albany which was the University's first "official" art museum. Cowley also exhibited his own works at the college. He brought the muscular energy of abstract expressionism and Cubism to canvases and stained glass works that reconstituted Victorian mansions and pastoral landscapes of his beloved village of Altamont, New York.His work is found in the permanent collections of several prominent New York museums including the Schenectady Museum, the Smith College Museum of Art, the Berkshire Museum, and the Albany Institute of History & Art. He was veteran of WWII and fought bravely at the Battle of the Bulge with the 94th Infantry Division, serving under General George Patton. He received the Bronze Star, the Combat of Infantry Badge and earned a Purple Heart but declined it.

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