Elemore Morgan Jr.

Born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana as an only child, he was raised on his grandfather's farm which influenced his affinity for nature and the rural life of Louisiana. His father influenced his decision to become an artist. Elemore Morgan Sr., a full-time photographer, had also worked and farmed with Louisiana architect A. Hays Town. At Louisiana State University and studied art under the tutelage of Caroline Durieux, Ralston Crawford and David LeDoux. For two years he served in the U.S. Air Force as a supply officer during the Korean War. With the help of the GI Bill, Morgan studied art at The Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art at the University of Oxford in England. In 1957 he returned to Louisiana began working in Lafayette with longtime friend and architect Neil Nehrbass. He served as an associate professor from 1965 to 1998 at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (then named the University of Southwestern Louisiana).

Morgan was renowned for his en plein air landscape paintings often in the heart of the rice growing region of southwest Louisiana. Many of Morgan’s landscapes were acrylic on oddly shaped Masonite panels, cut to fit his vision of the land, which he felt were integral to the design and composition of his works.[1]

Morgan contributed photography for a 1984 book titled The Makers of Cajun Music, which he co-produced with Cajun folklorist Barry Jean Ancelet, who wrote the text.

Morgan mused that his sense of nature affected his subject: "If you have more nature and less man, it’s going to have a certain effect on you. If you live in the city and you hardly see the sky, you’re going to think different. From growing up on that family farm and getting a real strong dose of nature, I need it to function. I also find that I’m in much better shape mentally if I’m out in nature on a regular basis."[2]

Morgan's paintings and drawings were featured in "Where Land Meets Sky," an exhibit at the Paul and Lulu Hilliard University Art Museum, The University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The exhibit combined his works with the poetry of Darrell Bourque. It ran May 28-July 31, 1999. A book published on the exhibit includes an essay by Dr. Steven Bradley.

In 2007, Louisiana artist Brian Guidry traveled with Morgan to New York City to help facilitate Morgan’s America project.

• Distinguished Artist award by the Delgado Society, of the New Orleans Museum of Art (2000).
• Outstanding Achievement in the Arts award by the Acadiana Arts Council (1990).
• Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching award by the Amoco Foundation (1984–85).

• Elemore Morgan Jr.
• Elemore Morgan Jr., August 6, 1931 – May 18, 2008
• Arthur Roger Gallery
• Louisiana Life profile