Juan Downey - Biography

Biography

Juan Downey was born in Santiago, Chile. His father David Downey V. was a distinguished architect in Chile and following in his father’s footsteps Juan Downey studied and completed a Bachelor of Arts degree in architecture at the Pontificia Universidad Católica of Chile. From a young age, he immersed himself in studying different forms of art, including painting, dance and writing. In 1961, to further his studies and develop his artistic practice, Downey traveled to Europe. He spent a few months in Barcelona and Madrid, followed by Paris where he lived for a period of three years during which he studied printmaking at Stanley William Hayter’s legendary Atelier 17. During this time, he befriended the artists Eugenio Téllez, Roberto Matta, Julio Le Parc, and Takis.

In 1965 Downey travelled to Washington DC at the invitation of The Organization of American States to have a solo show of his work. It was in Washington DC Downey would meet his wife Marilys Belt. He stayed in Washington DC for a couple of years before moving with his family to New York City in 1969 where he lived until his death in 1993. Downey taught at Pratt Institute in New York from 1970 until 1992.

He is recognized as an early adopter of video art; however, during his artistic career Downey created an extensive body of work that also includes electronic and video sculptures, photography, painting, drawing, printmaking, performance, installation and writing. Downey’s drawings are especially remarkable and remained a constant practice for the artist. All of his major works were accompanied by drawings. They not only reflect his “sureness of hand” as the curators David Ross and James Harithas noted (Juan Downey: With Energy Beyond These Walls, p. 329), but also serve as compelling documents of his ideas and visions, and reveal this sustained practice of drawing over a lifetime.