He was born in 1951 in New York City[2] and his work combines collage and painted elements, and elements of mass media to create abstract compositions.[3]
In 1990, Dowell established a graduate fine arts department at Otis College of Art and Design in Westchester.[4] In 2010, the Ben Maltz Gallery of the school showed "The Story of O", with work by twenty graduates of the department.[5] He was a "critic's pick" in the May 2010 issue of ARTnews.[6]