Dave Morgan

Born in eastern Washington state Dave Morgan grew up and lived much of his life in the mountain area of northern New Mexico. He moved to the coast of Maine in 2013 and set up his print studio, the Merrymeeting Press, in downtown Bath in 2015. Also in that year he opened a gallery in Bath focusing on handmade prints: the Green Lion Gallery.

An artist member of the Center for Maine Contemporary Art, Dave is self-taught as an artist. He has participated in classes and workshops through the years, including at Colorado College, the University of New Mexico, Santa Fe Community College, and Massachusetts College of Art. Dave describes feeling fortunate to work with printmaking mentors: Jean Gumpper, Siri Beckman, Matt Brown, and Jim Lee.

Dave writes: “My creative journey has had curious transmutations. It began with photography in the 1970s, when it was still done with silver and light (but in the dark). It’s gone on to include sifting through earth and time as an archaeologist; many years of working with wood in all its forms, from house framing to hand-carved furniture; and then working with living trees and ecosystems as a practitioner of ecological restoration. Now it’s circled back to visual art, but still with a connection to wood.

> My first prints grew out of a fascination with medieval art and a desire to rediscover, celebrate, and share the exuberant wonder of sculpture created a thousand years ago through black and white woodblock imagery. I love the alchemy of printmaking and got into the business of color woodblock printing through participation in a workshop with Matt Brown in 2014. Printmaking transmutes visual ideas through the crucibles of drawing, carving, inking, and printing into finished images that hold surprises for their makers and audiences. My work is in the permanent collections of the Northwest Art Center, Minot, ND, the Kyoto International Woodprint Association in Japan, and the Maine-Aomori Print Exchange. It’s also in private collections across the USA and in the UK; I am currently living and working in Cusco, Peru.”