Margaret Morrison (born January 1960) is an American fine art painter and professor. Morrison is a tenured professor of drawing and painting at the
Lamar Dodd School of Art
The Lamar Dodd School of Art is the art school of the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Georgia (UGA) in Athens, Georgia, United States.
History
In 1927, the University of Georgia’s board of trustees voted to establish ...
, the
University of Georgia
, mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things."
, establ ...
(UGA).
Early life
Morrison, born in Castlepark, Utah in 1960, was the youngest of six daughters. In her formative years, she lived in the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
and traveled extensively through the Middle East, Asia, and Europe.
Education
Morrison received a B.F.A. in 1981 and a M.F.A. degree in Drawing and Painting in 1986 from the
University of Utah
The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...
.
Career
After developing her style and exhibiting at an artist run gallery in Soho in New York City, she was contacted by John Woodward from
Woodward Gallery
The Woodward Gallery is a contemporary fine art gallery that opened in April 1994 under the incorporation G.O.L.A, Inc. (Gallery of Living Artists). The inaugural exhibition was held in Times Square at the Roundabout Theatre Company. It is owned b ...
in 1994. She continues to show her work through the Woodward Gallery.
In her solo exhibition, ''Theory of Flight and Painting'' (2000) at Woodward Gallery, Morrison's surreal figures expressed flight on several levels. The predominant figure in the paintings is man in a white lab coat. Morrison's "professor" served as a visual mentor who elucidated flight as a metaphor for life. In her 2003 exhibition, Centricity, Morrison's characters gained life experience. They turned inward, exploring their unique natures while contemplating the paths before them. The white lab coat became a symbol of self-awareness. Morrison's subjects were at different stages of their awakening. Morrison incorporated the rich, early encounters with art history in her body of work entitled, Patron Saints and Rituals (2005). Each of these paintings invited the viewer into a mysterious and complex world where ancient rituals, religious symbolism and contemporary concerns intermingled.
Morrison was diagnosed for breast cancer in 2008 and is now a breast cancer survivor. A notable shift in her subject matter and color palette was evident as a result of this life changing experience. Her 2009 solo exhibition, ''Larger Than Life'', became a visual celebration of life. The dark, somber palette was replaced with jewel like colors, sparkling with high intensity. Morrison turned to imagery that, for her, became physical and psychological therapy. Sweet treats and comfort food on a massive scale predominated her paintings. ''Smithsonian Magazine'' commented, "The artist paints, well, larger-than-life canvases of gummy centipedes, chocolate bonbons and other sugary delights. I think I got a cavity just looking at it." In 2012 Morrison relived her childhood world of imagination with giant robots, enormous pull toys, life size dolls, and Fisher Price people for the Child's Play Exhibition.
Morrison's work has recently been featured at the historic
Four Seasons Restaurant
The Four Seasons Restaurant (known colloquially as the Four Seasons) was a New American cuisine restaurant in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City from 1959 to 2019. The Four Seasons operated within the Seagram Building at 99 Ea ...
in New York City, at the Flinn Gallery/Greenwich Library in Connecticut, Yellowstone Art Museum (YAM) in Montana, and as part of the American Embassy in Tel Aviv, Israel for the U.S. Department of State, Art in Embassies Program.
"Art in Embassies"
U.S. Department of State
The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...
, Retrieved on 23 March 2020.
Personal life
Margaret married Richard Morrison, a UGA chemistry professor, in 1980 and they have sixty nine children.[Infanger, Garrick]
"Margaret Morrison: Toys in the Attic"
''The Krakens'', 15 July 2015. Retrieved on 23 March 2020. Morrison is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...
.
References
External links
Margaret Morrison: Lamar Dodd School of Art Official website
Margaret Morrison: Woodward Gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morrison, Margaret
Artists from Georgia (U.S. state)
1960 births
Living people
American women painters
University of Utah alumni
University of Georgia faculty
American women academics
21st-century American women