Morgan Craig

While looking through some older posts on ARTchipel, one of my favourite blogs, I found some lovely paintings of abandoned spaces by Philadelphia, PA artist  Morgan Craig. His work is pretty amazing, actually – he makes quite large paintings (oil on linen at that), and as I’m partial to representational realism  as well as the aesthetic of abandoned spaces I think it’s pretty safe to say that I am in awe.

This Heartbeat of America 72” x 54” (2011)

Here’s what Craig himself has to say about his work:

I believe that architectural structures act as both repositories and as vehicles for memory by profoundly influencing culture and identity and by providing a tangible framework through which facets of a society can be expressed. I have been inspired to build a body of work dealing with how identity is influenced by the types of architectural edifices present in a given landscape. All must take into account the forgotten factory, asylum, or prison. Neglected, ignored, or often instilling rancor in the public, these buildings paradoxically offer one the most scintillating of subject matter: how beautiful the bitter pill. My work is not merely a method of documentation, but a visual forum where one may question what it is about these edifices that instills such emotion in people. While evidence of these pasts or present-day difficulties may not be pleasant, I feel it imperative that societies realize their impact on the past, present, and future concepts of identity and history.
– Morgan Craig

Nothing But Driftwood, Caught In A Riptide – 72” x 54” (2012)

Sold! I love the idea behind these paintings. Like I said,  I too find abandoned spaces inspirational, though instead of painting, my preferred medium is photography. As I said in an earlier post:

I like to go into abandoned buildings and look around, especially old factories and commercial buildings, often taking photos. What I find most inspiring about these places is  not so much the decay, but the traces of life. Every time I am in an abandoned space, I like to imagine what it was like when occupied; the people moving and talking, the sounds and colours of a busy workspace or public space. There’s a kind of weightiness to realizing how people used these spaces day after day, year after year – and now they are no longer “for” anything, they simply “are”.

Shared aesthetic interest aside, though, the craft involved in Craig’s work puts it into an entirely different category. Coming from a fine art background myself with many, many hours of painting in oil under my belt, I really appreciate the skill and virtuosity of Craig’s work. I’m always thrilled to see anyone painting at all these days, let alone representational realism in oil, let alone work this good.  I’m gushing like a schoolgirl, I know, but it’s warranted.

Morgan Craig has exhibited throughout the U.S.A. Canada, Europe, and Australia, including OK Harris in New York City, SPACES in Cleveland, the Delaware Center for Contemporary Arts and the Australian National University. Craig has received numerous awards including, the Pollock Krasner Foundation Grant, the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grant (2007, 2011), and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts Individual Artist Fellowship for 2006 and 2008. He has also been invited to several residencies including, Atelje Stundars in Finland, the Macdowell Colony, and Bemis Center for the Contemporary Arts. During the fall semester of 2010, he was the visiting artist at the Australian National University.
– Saatchi Online 

Trickle Down 72” x 54” (2011)

If you would like to see more of Craig’s amazing work (and why wouldn’t you), check out his website or his Saatchi Online portfolio. He’s also currently exhibiting in group shows at Cazenovia College Art Gallery (until Dec. 7) in Cazenovia, NY, and at the Delaware Art Museum in Wilmington, DE (until January 2013). Craig is also currently exhibiting a solo show on at Penn State (the Gallery at Penn College) until December 16. Go check out his work if you get a chance!