Wallace Morgan
Encyclopedia
Wallace Morgan was an war artist
for the United States Army
during WWI.
where his family had moved shortly after his birth. Upon graduation from high school he returned to his birthplace, New York City
, to pursue a career in art. He studied at the National Academy of Design
while working at the New York Sun
as a part-time artist.
In 1898 he joined the staff of the New York Herald
and became a full-time newspaper artist covering whatever assignments came his way, including a 1902 trip to Martinique to cover the eruptions of Mt. Pele. During this period he developed the ability to render a faithful picture of nature with little need for preliminary sketches, an essential skill for a newspaper illustrator who had to convey to readers the image of an event quickly and accurately.
After eleven years with the Herald he opened his own studio. Shortly thereafter Collier's commissioned him and Julian Bond
to tour the United States and report their findings in words and pictures. Two trips across the country each produced a book that presented a light view of life in America. World War I and Morgan's selection as an AEF
artist brought an early end to a third trip. Morgan put his ability to sketch quickly to good use during the war. His work projects an air of activity and movement into scenes of combat. A number of his pictures also reflect his apparent interest in the many columns of troops, animals, and equipment that moved ceaselessly across the battlefields of France. After the war Morgan returned to work in his studio in New York City.
He died in 1948.
War artist
A war artist depicts some aspect of war through art; this might be a pictorial record or it might commemorate how "war shapes lives." War artists have explored a visual and sensory dimension of war which is often absent in written histories or other accounts of warfare.- Definition and context:A...
for the United States Army
United States Army Art Program
The U.S. Army Art Program or United States Army Combat Art Program is a program created by the United States Army to create artwork for museums and other programs sponsored by the US Army...
during WWI.
Biography
He was born in 1875 and he grew up in Albany, New YorkAlbany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
where his family had moved shortly after his birth. Upon graduation from high school he returned to his birthplace, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, to pursue a career in art. He studied at the National Academy of Design
National Academy of Design
The National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts, founded in New York City as the National Academy of Design – known simply as the "National Academy" – is an honorary association of American artists founded in 1825 by Samuel F. B. Morse, Asher B. Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E...
while working at the New York Sun
New York Sun
The New York Sun was a weekday daily newspaper published in New York City from 2002 to 2008. When it debuted on April 16, 2002, adopting the name, motto, and masthead of an otherwise unrelated earlier New York paper, The Sun , it became the first general-interest broadsheet newspaper to be started...
as a part-time artist.
In 1898 he joined the staff of the New York Herald
New York Herald
The New York Herald was a large distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between May 6, 1835, and 1924.-History:The first issue of the paper was published by James Gordon Bennett, Sr., on May 6, 1835. By 1845 it was the most popular and profitable daily newspaper in the UnitedStates...
and became a full-time newspaper artist covering whatever assignments came his way, including a 1902 trip to Martinique to cover the eruptions of Mt. Pele. During this period he developed the ability to render a faithful picture of nature with little need for preliminary sketches, an essential skill for a newspaper illustrator who had to convey to readers the image of an event quickly and accurately.
After eleven years with the Herald he opened his own studio. Shortly thereafter Collier's commissioned him and Julian Bond
Julian Bond
Horace Julian Bond , known as Julian Bond, is an American social activist and leader in the American civil rights movement, politician, professor, and writer. While a student at Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia, during the early 1960s, he helped found the Student Nonviolent Coordinating...
to tour the United States and report their findings in words and pictures. Two trips across the country each produced a book that presented a light view of life in America. World War I and Morgan's selection as an AEF
AEF
AEF is a three-letter acronym which may refer to:* Aboriginal Evangelical Fellowship, Australia* Afrique Équatoriale Française or French Equatorial Africa* Agricultural Industry Electronics Foundation* Air Experience Flight* Alameda Education Foundation...
artist brought an early end to a third trip. Morgan put his ability to sketch quickly to good use during the war. His work projects an air of activity and movement into scenes of combat. A number of his pictures also reflect his apparent interest in the many columns of troops, animals, and equipment that moved ceaselessly across the battlefields of France. After the war Morgan returned to work in his studio in New York City.
He died in 1948.