Robert C. Morgan

Robert C. Morgan’s paintings, photographs, performance works, conceptual art, and experimental films have been exhibited in several one-person and group exhibitions throughout the United States, Europe, Eastern Europe, South America, and the Republic of Korea. He has shown at prestigious galleries and museums, including exhibitions at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston (1972, 1974), Franklin Furnace (1976), The Whitney Museum of American Art (1976), McKissick Museum, University of South Carolina (1980), Artists Space (1976, 1977, 1985), Galleri Bellman, NYC (1983), The Art Gallery of the University of Texas, Permian Basin (1984), The Memorial Art Gallery, University of Rochester (1986), CEPA, Buffalo (1987), Galerie Antoine Candau (Paris), 1989, Galerie 1900-2000, Cologne Art Fair (1990), Millennium Film Workshop (1988), Eric Stark Gallery (1992), Construction in Process in Lodz, Poland (1993), Anthology Film Archives (1996), and The Museum of Modern Art, Film Department (1999). From 1988-89, he was selected as an artist in residence at the International Studio Program at The Clocktower, Institute for Art and Urban Resources. In 2006, he was invited to screen a selection of his Super-8 films at the Millennium Film Workshop in New York. His  paintings and early films were exhibited at the Gaya Fusion Gallery in Ubud, Bali in the Republic of Indonesia (2006), the Amelie Wallace Gallery at SUNY Old Westbury (2007), the Wooster Arts Space (2007). In 2009, Morgan was given a two-gallery survey exhibition (with catalog) at the Sideshow Gallery, Williamsburg in collaboration with the Bjorn Ressle Gallery, NYC. In 2010, he performed “Purgation of Nike” at The Lab Gallery in New York. In 2012, Morgan showed recent paintings at Able Fine Art in Seoul, and was represented at the Korean International Art Fair in October 2012. A major survey exhibition (with catalog) was exhibited at the ProyectosMontclova in Mexico City (March 23 – April 29, 2017).  His work was shown in 2017 and  2018 at the Armory Show in New York City. He is currently preparing for a major exhibition at the Shilla Gallery in Seoul in 2022.

 

 

"My paintings involve a reduced optical surface based on a material form of thought. I employ fundamental constructive signs that suggest variable levels of ambiguity. This may result in a paradox of presence and absence that further admits a surface that both reflects and absorbs light.  My work intends to test the limits of the visual and the non-visual – to create paintings that defy meaning through description. Over the years I have retained an architectonic approach to painting, often working in a serial mode of progression. Although the paintings are conceived and painted in this manner, I want to present them differently to give the work more variety and buoyancy. Today my paintings are relatively small. They rarely exceed the dimensions of 30 x 40 inches. While the metallic and graphite forms are intended to reflect light, the iron oxide and burnt umber mixed with ultramarine absorb light at the same moment."