Catherine Morgan- Ceramic Artist
Catherine Morgan began studying ceramics at Saint Louis Community College. She transferred to Southern Illinois University and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts - emphasis in ceramics. She is now working on a body of work and works as a ceramics instructor at Laumeier Sculpture park and Craft Alliance. Morgan sells work at the Componere Gallery of Art. In June of 2022 she was awarded a grant by the Regional Arts Commission and a grant in 2023 by the RAC.
Morgan developed a dual exhibit proposal titled Collected Fragments, which was on display at the St Louis Artist Guild with artist Victoria Miener. She had a solo show at the Forest Park Gallery of Contemporary Art, titled Environmental Indicator.
To support of students at the community-college level, Morgan's grant proposal at St Louis Community College Forest Park was accepted in 2022 and 2023; the grant approved in 2022 supported students at the college by bringing in artists to discuss navigating art show applications & how to best photograph & document their work/prepare portfolios. The grant brought in Vanessa Rudloff and Dan Barnett for the artist talks, which provided students with unique experiences to learn from practicing artists. This grant also funded two cameras for students to borrow in order to photograph their artwork.
Special thanks to Norleen Nosri!
Another grant co-written with artist Zackary Petot was accepted in 2023, which will provide printmaking equipment and prepare students at St Louis Community College to enter the workforce with the skills needed to operate print-making machines readily used in almost all printing centers in the region.
Morgan has always been fascinated by biology and the natural world and became aware of the human impact on the environment during her many visits to waterways. In her earlier work, through collecting glass and debris from local creeks, she found a new material to use for her ceramics. She fires found glass onto the surface of her work to create a connection with recycling and pollution. Using porcelain creates a connection regarding its historical value, and found objects such as slag glass and metal directly connects her work with reusing material that would otherwise end up in a landfill.
Her recent research has led her to create work that is about the Ozark Hellbender, which is an endangered species endemic to southern Missouri and a small part of Arkansas; she wants to create a more local connection with her work through abstract ceramic pieces. Other pieces focus on non-native species, such as the Cane Toad.
In the summer of 2022, Morgan was awarded an Artist Support Grant from the Regional Arts Commission, which supports her craft by improving her at-home studio. She was also awarded a grant in 2023 which will further support her artisitc independence, and further her skills in ceramic work via workshops.
Morgan is currently working at Laumeier Sculpture Park as a ceramics instructor, where she teaches wheel-throwing, hand-building, making handles, surface decorating techniques, and glazing. Morgan also teaches hand-building at Craft Alliance.
Future plans include collaborating with regional environmental groups to increase awareness of pollution and amphibians as environmental indicators.