George Morrison (artist)
Encyclopedia
George Morrison was an American
landscape painter and sculptor. His Indian name was Wah Wah Teh Go Nay Ga Bo (Standing In the Northern Lights).
born on the Grand Portage Indian Reservation
near Chippewa City, Cook County, Minnesota
, he graduated from Grand Marais High School in 1938 and then the Minnesota School of Art, now the Minneapolis College of Art and Design
, in 1943.
Having been chosen to receive the Van Derlip Traveling Scholarship, Morrison studied at the Art Students League from 1943 -1946 in New York City
, where he became part of a circle of abstract expressionists
.
In 1952 after receiving a Fulbright scholarship
he studied in Paris
and Antibes
.
for year and then moved back to New York City
in 1954 where he became acquainted with prominent American expressionists: Willem de Kooning
, Franz Kline
and Jackson Pollock
.
He then taught in Minneapolis, Duluth, Dayton, Ohio
, Ithaca (Cornell University
), Pennsylvania (Penn State), and New York City.
From 1963-1970 Morrison taught at the Rhode Island School of Design
.
Beginning in 1970 he taught American Indian studies and art at the University of Minnesota
until he retired in 1983.
He lived in a renovated church in Saint Paul, Minnesota
with his son Briand and his wife, Hazel Belvo, another Minnesota artist, who taught at Minneapolis College of Art and Design
and Saint Paul Academy
and is known for her series of pieces based on the Witch Tree
.
During the mid-1970s, they acquired land near Grand Portage, Minnesota
on Lake Superior, which they named Red Rock. This became their home and studio. He and Belvo divorced in 1991 but remained friends. Morrison suffered some life-threatening illnesses but kept on working until he died at Red Rock in April 2000.
He is well known for wood collage sculptures and for the landscape paintings he preferred.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
landscape painter and sculptor. His Indian name was Wah Wah Teh Go Nay Ga Bo (Standing In the Northern Lights).
Early life and education
A ChippewaOjibwa
The Ojibwe or Chippewa are among the largest groups of Native Americans–First Nations north of Mexico. They are divided between Canada and the United States. In Canada, they are the third-largest population among First Nations, surpassed only by Cree and Inuit...
born on the Grand Portage Indian Reservation
Grand Portage Indian Reservation
The Grand Portage Indian Reservation is located in Cook County near the tip of Minnesota's Arrowhead Region in the extreme northeast part of the state. The community was considered part of the Lake Superior Band of Chippewa, but is not a party to the treaties that group signed...
near Chippewa City, Cook County, Minnesota
Cook County, Minnesota
Northern Minnesota offers extreme winter weather. While the averages are low, the extremes provide more details. A third of the year is below freezing . Of those days, 21 are below zero degrees Fahrenheit .-External links:...
, he graduated from Grand Marais High School in 1938 and then the Minnesota School of Art, now the Minneapolis College of Art and Design
Minneapolis College of Art and Design
Minneapolis College of Art and Design is a private, nonprofit four-year and postgraduate college specializing in the visual arts. Located in the Whittier neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, MCAD currently enrolls approximately 1,000 students offering curriculum that includes...
, in 1943.
Having been chosen to receive the Van Derlip Traveling Scholarship, Morrison studied at the Art Students League from 1943 -1946 in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where he became part of a circle of abstract expressionists
Abstract expressionism
Abstract expressionism was an American post–World War II art movement. It was the first specifically American movement to achieve worldwide influence and put New York City at the center of the western art world, a role formerly filled by Paris...
.
In 1952 after receiving a Fulbright scholarship
Fulbright Program
The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright-Hays Program, is a program of competitive, merit-based grants for international educational exchange for students, scholars, teachers, professionals, scientists and artists, founded by United States Senator J. William Fulbright in 1946. Under the...
he studied in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and Antibes
Antibes
Antibes is a resort town in the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France.It lies on the Mediterranean in the Côte d'Azur, located between Cannes and Nice. The town of Juan-les-Pins is within the commune of Antibes...
.
Later life
He lived in Duluth, MinnesotaDuluth, Minnesota
Duluth is a port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Saint Louis County. The fourth largest city in Minnesota, Duluth had a total population of 86,265 in the 2010 census. Duluth is also the second largest city that is located on Lake Superior after Thunder Bay, Ontario,...
for year and then moved back to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1954 where he became acquainted with prominent American expressionists: Willem de Kooning
Willem de Kooning
Willem de Kooning was a Dutch American abstract expressionist artist who was born in Rotterdam, the Netherlands....
, Franz Kline
Franz Kline
Franz Jozef Kline was an American painter mainly associated with the Abstract Expressionist movement centered around New York in the 1940s and 1950s. He was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and attended Girard College, an academy in Philadelphia for fatherless boys...
and Jackson Pollock
Jackson Pollock
Paul Jackson Pollock , known as Jackson Pollock, was an influential American painter and a major figure in the abstract expressionist movement. During his lifetime, Pollock enjoyed considerable fame and notoriety. He was regarded as a mostly reclusive artist. He had a volatile personality, and...
.
He then taught in Minneapolis, Duluth, Dayton, Ohio
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
, Ithaca (Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
), Pennsylvania (Penn State), and New York City.
From 1963-1970 Morrison taught at the Rhode Island School of Design
Rhode Island School of Design
Rhode Island School of Design is a fine arts and design college located in Providence, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1877. Located at the base of College Hill, the RISD campus is contiguous with the Brown University campus. The two institutions share social, academic, and community resources and...
.
Beginning in 1970 he taught American Indian studies and art at the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
until he retired in 1983.
He lived in a renovated church in Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...
with his son Briand and his wife, Hazel Belvo, another Minnesota artist, who taught at Minneapolis College of Art and Design
Minneapolis College of Art and Design
Minneapolis College of Art and Design is a private, nonprofit four-year and postgraduate college specializing in the visual arts. Located in the Whittier neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, MCAD currently enrolls approximately 1,000 students offering curriculum that includes...
and Saint Paul Academy
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
St. Paul Academy and Summit School is a college preparatory independent day school in St. Paul, Minnesota, for students in grades K–12....
and is known for her series of pieces based on the Witch Tree
Witch Tree
The Witch Tree as it is commonly known, also called Manidoo-giizhikens, or Little Cedar Spirit Tree by the Ojibwa Indian tribe is an ancient Thuja occidentalis growing on the shore of Lake Superior in Cook County, Minnesota...
.
During the mid-1970s, they acquired land near Grand Portage, Minnesota
Grand Portage, Minnesota
Grand Portage is an unorganized territory in Cook County, Minnesota, on Lake Superior, at the northeast corner of the state near the border with northwestern Ontario. The population was 557 at the 2000 census...
on Lake Superior, which they named Red Rock. This became their home and studio. He and Belvo divorced in 1991 but remained friends. Morrison suffered some life-threatening illnesses but kept on working until he died at Red Rock in April 2000.
He is well known for wood collage sculptures and for the landscape paintings he preferred.
Selected solo exhibitions
- 1948-1960: Grand Central Moderns Gallery - New York City, NYNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
- 1949: Hart Gallery - DuluthDuluth, MinnesotaDuluth is a port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Saint Louis County. The fourth largest city in Minnesota, Duluth had a total population of 86,265 in the 2010 census. Duluth is also the second largest city that is located on Lake Superior after Thunder Bay, Ontario,...
, MNMinnesotaMinnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state... - 1950: Ed Weiner Gallery - ProvincetownProvincetown, MassachusettsProvincetown is a New England town located at the extreme tip of Cape Cod in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 3,431 at the 2000 census, with an estimated 2007 population of 3,174...
, MAMassachusettsThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010... - 1954: University of MinnesotaUniversity of MinnesotaThe University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
- Duluth, MN - 1955: Shorter CollegeShorter CollegeShorter University is a private, coeducational, liberal arts university located in Rome, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1873, it is a Christian university historically affiliated with the Georgia Baptist Convention....
- RomeRome, GeorgiaLocated in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, Rome is the largest city and the county seat of Floyd County, Georgia, United States. It is the principal city of the Rome, Georgia Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Floyd County...
, GAGeorgia (U.S. state)Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788... - 1957: University of GeorgiaUniversity of GeorgiaThe University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
- AthensAthens, GeorgiaAthens-Clarke County is a consolidated city–county in U.S. state of Georgia, in the northeastern part of the state, comprising the former City of Athens proper and Clarke County. The University of Georgia is located in this college town and is responsible for the initial growth of the city...
, GA - 1960: Dayton Art InstituteDayton Art InstituteThe Dayton Art Institute is a museum of fine arts in Dayton, Ohio, USA. The Dayton Art Institute was rated one of the top 10 best art museums in the United States for kids. The museum also ranks in the top 3% of all art museums in North America in 3 of 4 factors...
- DaytonDayton, OhioDayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
, OHOhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus... - 1961: Iowa State College - Cedar FallsCedar Falls, IowaCedar Falls is a city in Black Hawk County, Iowa, United States, and it is home to one of Iowa's three public universities, the University of Northern Iowa. The population was 39,260 in the 2010 census, an increase from the 36,145 population in the 2000 census...
, IAIowaIowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New... - 1962: Cornell UniversityCornell UniversityCornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
- IthacaIthaca, New YorkThe city of Ithaca, is a city in upstate New York and the county seat of Tompkins County, as well as the largest community in the Ithaca-Tompkins County metropolitan area...
, NY; Antioch CollegeAntioch CollegeAntioch College is a private, independent liberal arts college in Yellow Springs, Ohio, United States. It was the founder and the flagship institution of the six-campus Antioch University system. Founded in 1852 by the Christian Connection, the college began operating in 1853 with politician and...
- Yellow SpringsYellow Springs, OhioYellow Springs is a village in Greene County, Ohio, United States, and is the location of Antioch College and Antioch University Midwest. The population was 3,487 at the 2010 census...
, OH - 1967: Academy of Fine Arts - LynchburgLynchburg, VirginiaLynchburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 75,568 as of 2010. Located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains along the banks of the James River, Lynchburg is known as the "City of Seven Hills" or "The Hill City." Lynchburg was the only major city in...
, VAVirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there... - 1973: Heard MuseumHeard MuseumThe Heard Museum of Native Cultures and Art is a museum located in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. There is also the Heard Museum North Scottsdale branch in Scottsdale and the Heard Museum West branch in Surprise....
- PhoenixPhoenix, ArizonaPhoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
, AZArizonaArizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
; Amon Carter Museum of Art - Fort WorthFort Worth, TexasFort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
, TXTexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
; Art Museum of South Texas - Corpus ChristiCorpus Christi, TexasCorpus Christi is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas. The county seat of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patricio counties. The MSA population in 2008 was 416,376. The population was 305,215 at the 2010 census making it the...
, TX - 1976: Minneapolis Institute of ArtsMinneapolis Institute of ArtsThe Minneapolis Institute of Arts is a fine art museum located in the Whittier neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota, on a campus that covers nearly 8 acres , formerly Morrison Park...
- MinneapolisMinneapolis, MinnesotaMinneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
, MN; Bethel CollegeBethel CollegeBethel College can refer to:* Bethel College * Bethel College * Bethel College * Bethel University , called Bethel College until 2004* Bethel University , called Bethel College until 2009...
- Saint PaulSaint Paul, MinnesotaSaint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...
, MN - 1978: Macalester CollegeMacalester CollegeMacalester College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It was founded in 1874 as a Presbyterian-affiliated but nonsectarian college. Its first class entered September 15, 1885. The college is located on a campus in a historic residential neighborhood...
- Saint Paul, MN; University of Wisconsin–Stout - MenomonieMenomonie, WisconsinTwo other spellings of the name appear elsewhere, see Menomonee and Menominee. For the town, see Menomonie .Menomonie is a city in and the county seat of Dunn County in the western part of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The city's population was 16,264 as of the 2010 census...
, WIWisconsinWisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
; Carl N. Gorman Museum, University of CaliforniaUniversity of CaliforniaThe University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
- DavisDavis, CaliforniaDavis is a city in Yolo County, California, United States. It is part of the Sacramento–Arden-Arcade–Roseville Metropolitan Statistical Area...
, CACaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area... - 1983: University of MinnesotaUniversity of MinnesotaThe University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
- University Art Museum, Minneapolis, MN - 1984: “George Morrison: Paper Collages,” Tweed Museum of ArtTweed Museum of ArtThe Tweed Museum of Art is a museum located on the campus of the University of Minnesota Duluth, in Duluth, Minnesota.It has a permanent collection of over 6,000 works covering a range of periods and cultures in art history, with particular strengths in American landscape painting. The Tweed was...
- University of Minnesota, Duluth, MN; - 1987-1988: “Horizon: Small Painting Series 1980-87,” Minnesota Museum of American Art - St. Paul, MN
- 1990: “Standing in the Northern Lights: George Morrison, A retrospective,” circ., Tweed Museum of Art - University of Minnesota, Duluth and the Minnesota Museum of Art, St Paul, MN.
- 1998: "Morrison's Horizon," Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minnesota Artists Exhibition Program, Minneapolis, MN
- 2010: "From the Minnesota Museum of American Art", Bockley Gallery, Minneapolis, MinnesotaMinneapolis, MinnesotaMinneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
General references
- H. H. Arnason, History of Modern Art: Painting, Sculpture, Architecture, Photography. 3rd ed. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1986.
- Joseph Bruchac, The Heye Center Opens in Manhattan with Three Exhibitions of Native Arts, (Smithsonian v25 n7 p. 40–49 Oct 1994) ISSN 0037-7333 OCLC 93642777
- William Rubin, "Arshile Gorky, Surrealism and the New American Painting," In Henry GeldzahlerHenry GeldzahlerHenry Geldzahler was a curator of contemporary art in the late 20th century, as well as a modern art art historian and art critic...
, New York painting and sculpture: 1940–1970, (New York, Dutton 1969.) OCLC 45703 pp. 372–402 - W. Jackson Rushing, Native American art and the New York avant-garde : a history of cultural primitivism, (Austin : University of Texas Press, 1995.) ISBN 0292755473 9780292755475
- Marika Herskovic, American Abstract Expressionism of the 1950s An Illustrated Survey, (New York School Press, 2003.) ISBN 0-9677994-1-4
- Smithsonian Institution Research Information System; Archival, Manuscript and Photographic Collections, George Morrison