George Morrison

Collage X Landscape

Collage X Landscape foregrounds the distinctive amalgamation of stylistic languages and pictorial traditions that characterize the work of George Morrison, who is widely regarded as one of the most important modern Native artists of the 20th century. Early in his career, Morrison’s work deviated towards the figurative styles of American modernists. Upon his arrival to New York City in the 1940s, his work became increasingly abstract, influenced by his fellow abstract expressionists. Inspired by artist and friend Louise Nevelson, Morrison began creating wood collages in the 1960s. Collage X Landscape was likely produced when Morrison and his wife returned to living in Minnesota on Lake Superior. Morrison created these wood collages by collecting driftwood on the banks of the lake and constructing landscapes through patchworked elements of the material. Variation in the types, hues, and shapes of the assembled pieces of wood creates a rich abstracted landscape that mimics the natural elements of northern Minnesota. A distinct horizon line seen in the upper quarter of the work yearns for and celebrates the landscape on Lake Superior.