ENGAGE Projects is thrilled to announce our upcoming solo exhibition by self-determined ‘non-objective’ painter Morgan. The exhibition entitled De-Lineation will fill the gallery with decisive strokes of color and chaos made throughout his decades-long career. Perhaps more akin to the process of drawing, the works call on feelings of frustration and irresolution as viewers attempt to visually untangle the impossible knots of Morgan’s creation. It is this impossibility that wields the success of the works, illustrating a dimensional interconnectedness that words can only grasp at. The prefix ‘de-,’ meaning to “debar” or “derail,” according to the Collins Dictionary, harks back to larger themes of contradiction within the human experience. Please join us on Friday, February 16, 6:00-8:00pm for the opening reception of the exhibition and celebration with the artist.

Recently making the move from Minneapolis to Chicago, Morgan is rooted in the Midwest, where he continues his committed study of the arts. Line and form become lost, and surface again as Morgan leans into the improvisational impulses of design. Heavily influenced by the domestic aesthetic of Afrocentric textiles, Morgan’s work is markedly discrete from the Western idea of abstract expressionism, which is historically defined by a white masculinity unfamiliar to Morgan’s practice.

​Morgan received his MFA in painting from the University of Pennsylvania Weitzman School of Design in Philadelphia. In his early career, he practiced a European model of learning that honed his skills in observational drawing. He soon departed from this style of drawing when he realized he could not find his voice within those parameters and established his lifelong practice in non-objective drawing that he is best known for today. Morgan is a recipient of numerous awards, fellowships, and grants.

FULL PRESS RELEASE

“Is time an ever-present and inescapable reality? Time (as I understand it) is constant and apparently seems to be moving faster. The art historian Pamela Lee fears that time is perpetual and endless without conclusion, and what we have are only markers of its existence. For instance, death itself is simply a marker, but perhaps not an ending. As a painter, I don’t believe the work is ever finished or has reached an end because the process of being inspired continues.”  — Morgan

Time Erases Time, 2007
graphite, black gesso, acrylic paint, and collage on canvas over panel 
29 7/8 x 29 3/4 in
75.9 x 75.6 cm

Who Decides, 2018
ink, graphite, and colored pencil on paper
12 x 12 in
30.5 x 30.5 cm

Blue Train, 2018
Ink, graphite, and colored pencil on paper
12 x 12 in
30.5 x 30.5 cm

Mapping Memories, 2019
graphite, acrylic ink, pen, watercolor crayon on paper
22 x 30 in
55.9 x 76.2 cm

Beyond the Pale, 2019
​watercolor pencil, black ink, acrylic ink, and graphite on paper 
22 x 30 in
55.9 x 76.2 cm

Divertimento, 2008
ink, acrylic, red transfer paper, black gesso, and collage on Moleskin notebook paper 
​10 x 8 in
25.4 x 20.3 cm

Ruins as Allegory, 2008
ink, acrylic, red transfer paper, black gesso, and collage on Moleskin notebook paper 
​10 x 8 in
25.4 x 20.3 cm

Yielding Seed, 2008
ink, acrylic, red transfer paper, black gesso, and collage on Moleskin notebook paper 
​10 x 8 in
25.4 x 20.3 cm

The Subject is Matter, 2008
ink, acrylic, red transfer paper, black gesso, and collage on Moleskin notebook paper 
​10 x 8 in
25.4 x 20.3 cm

Another Plateau, 2008
ink, acrylic, red transfer paper, black gesso, and collage on Moleskin notebook paper 
​10 x 8 in
25.4 x 20.3 cm

Intimate Nature, 2006
pen and ink, gauche on paper 
9 3/4 x 8 in
24.8 x 20.3 cm

Social Capital, 2006
​pen and ink, gauche on paper 
9 3/4 x 8 in
24.8 x 20.3 cm

Changing Nature, 2006
​pen and ink, gauche on paper 
9 3/4 x 8 in
24.8 x 20.3 cm

Vague Hypotheticals, 2006
​pen and ink, gauche on paper 
9 3/4 x 8 in
24.8 x 20.3 cm

A Form of Exile, 2005
graphite, ink, and black gesso on wood panel 
59 1/2 x 59 1/2 in
151.1 x 151.1 cm

Beckoning Uncertainty, 2014
​acrylic ink, graphite, transfer paper, black ink, and colored pencil on paper 
15 1/4 x 15 1/4 in
38.7 x 38.7 cm

Strange Distraction, 2014
acrylic, transfer paper, graphite, and white ink on paper
13 x 13 in
33 x 33 cm

Disruptive Zone, 2015
acrylic ink, watercolor pencil, black ink, and graphite on paper 
15 1/4 x 15 1/4 in
38.7 x 38.7 cm

Forced Amnesia, 2007
black gesso, graphite, and acrylic on canvas over panel 
29 7/8 x 29 3/4 in
75.9 x 75.6 cm

Functional Space, 2009
acrylic, black gesso, colored pencil, and collage on linen canvas outer panel 
14 7/8 x 14 3/4 in
37.8 x 37.5 cm

Lessons in Obedience, 2009
acrylic, black gesso, colored pencil, and collage on canvas over panel 
14 7/8 x 14 3/4 in
37.8 x 37.5 cm

Visionary Animal, 2003
graphite, black Gesso on paper
10 1/2 x 10 1/4 in
26.7 x 26 cm

Transient Threads, 2004
graphite, black Gesso on paper
10 1/2 x 10 1/4 in
26.7 x 26 cm

Caught Breathless, 2004
graphite, black Gesso on paper
10 1/2 x 10 1/4 in
26.7 x 26 cm

Evening Winds, 2003
graphite, black Gesso on paper
10 1/2 x 10 1/4 in
26.7 x 26 cm

Cultural Crossroads, 2007
black gesso, acrylic paint, graphite and collage on panel
12 x 12 in
30.5 x 30.5 cm