ADGER W. COWANS

Adger Cowans is a fine art photographer and abstract expressionist painter. He has experimented with a myriad of mediums over his artistic career. Renowned in the world of photography and fine art, his works have been shown at The George Eastman House, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, International Museum of Photography, Museum of Modern Art, The Whitney, The Getty, The Cleveland Museum of Art, Harvard Fine Art Museum, Detroit Art Institute, James E. Lewis Museum and numerous other art institutions.  After leaving Ohio University with a BFA in photography, Adger worked with Life Magazine photographer Gordon Parks before entering the United States Navy in 1958.

Throughout his impressive career Adger has received many awards. Among the most prestigious was the Lorenzo il Magnifico alla Carriera in recognition of a Distinguished Career at the 2001 Florence Biennale of Contemporary Art.  He also received The Lifetime Achievement Award from Howard University.  In 1961 Adger had his first one-man show at The Heliography Gallery; Jacob Deschin of the New York Times described his work as “Boldly inventive and experimental...and the artist is a craftsman to his fingertips.”

"For me, the artist’s responsibility is to keep the temple (body, mind, and spirit) clear, clean and open by being aware and by keeping watch over what enters it mentally and physically. When it is so tuned, the creative impulses can be fully received and reflected to the highest degree, where line, form, and color define a space that the viewer can feel with the heart, explore with the eyes, and contemplate with the mind."