Jim Morphesis: Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth

Nov 18, 2017 to Feb 2, 2018

Location: Kellogg University Art Gallery

About the Exhibition The Artist Program Schedule Installation Views Videos

Jim Morphesis To date, Morphesis’ life work has represented not only a spiritual, but cognitive and ever personal journey of self-exploration –not only for the artist him-“self”, but as a study of humankind’s mutual self-examination. Traveling hand-in hand with historically religious uses of symbolism that emanate from early Christian and Easter Orthodox iconography, direct and indirect uses of memento mori*, and a masterful nod to Renaissance’s chiaroscuro and impasto, his figurative work may, on the surface, speak for itself. However, while religiosity and its visual interpretations float on the surface, one can earn more by delving much deeper. By exploring the more profound meaning beneath layers, a subliminal encounter more personal in nature, evolves. Morphesis offers an encounter with the existential, ontological and ever-ephemeral search for life’s meaning: the philosophical questions regarding the nature of “being” and the understanding of “self”, both internally, and communally as a human race, emerge. This probing expedition confronts our own inescapable mortality, and leads towards the always-elemental human query of spiritual immortality.

Artist Biography

Jim Morphesis portrait Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1948, Jim Morphesis received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Tyler School of Art of Temple University in 1970 and earned his Master of Fine Arts degree from the California Institute of the Arts in 1972. Morphesis’ paintings have been shown in forty-three, solo exhibitions and in more than one hundred and thirty invitational group exhibitions at museums and galleries including: the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Queens Museum of Art in New York City, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the State Museum of Contemporary Art in Thessaloniki, Greece. Morphesis’ paintings can be seen in the permanent collections of more than twenty-five museums including: the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, the Oakland Museum of California Art, the Phoenix Museum of Art, the San Antonio Museum of Art, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. For his work, Morphesis has been recognized with awards that include: the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Modern and Contemporary Art Council, New Talent Purchase Award, the Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Grant for Painting and Sculpture and a First Prize at the Fourth Florence International Biennial of Contemporary Art. Jim Morphesis currently lives and works in Los Angeles, California.

Image at top left: Photo Portrait of Jim Morphesis

Friday, September 25, 2020,

Jim Morphesis:

Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth | Exhibition Catalog Launch

Jim Morphesis: Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth, a print on demand exhibition catalog, launches on September 25th on Amazon!

Tuesday, January 30, 2018, 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm

Artist Reception and Lecture:
Jim Morphesis at the Kellogg University Art Gallery

Learn the inspiration and the narrative behind the works of Los Angeles-based artist Jim Morphesis at his Artist Lecture at the Kellogg University Art Gallery.

Saturday, November 18, 2017, 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm

Opening Reception:

Jim Morphesis at the Kellogg University Art Gallery

The Kellogg University Art Gallery's latest exhibition, "Jim Morphesis: Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth," kicks off with a reception at 2 p.m. and an Artist Talk at 3:30 p.m.

Gallery Views

Title Wall entrance view, Exhibition: Jim Morphesis: Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth, Nov 18, 2017 - Feb 1, 2018, Curator: Michele Cairella Fillmore, W. Keith & Janet Kellogg Art Gallery, Cal Poly Pomona. [Title Wall of Jim Morphesis: Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth]

Eastside of front gallery, Exhibition: Jim Morphesis: Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth, Nov 18, 2017 - Feb 1, 2018, Curator: Michele Cairella Fillmore, W. Keith & Janet Kellogg Art Gallery, Cal Poly Pomona. [Panoramic of the South gallery]

Eastside of front gallery, Exhibition: Jim Morphesis: Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth, Nov 18, 2017 - Feb 1, 2018, Curator: Michele Cairella Fillmore, W. Keith & Janet Kellogg Art Gallery, Cal Poly Pomona. [Panoramic of the South gallery]

Westside of front gallery, Exhibition: Jim Morphesis: Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth, Nov 18, 2017 - Feb 1, 2018, Curator: Michele Cairella Fillmore, W. Keith & Janet Kellogg Art Gallery, Cal Poly Pomona. [Panoramic of the North gallery]

Corridor of gallery, Exhibition: Jim Morphesis: Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth, Nov 18, 2017 - Feb 1, 2018, Curator: Michele Cairella Fillmore, W. Keith & Janet Kellogg Art Gallery, Cal Poly Pomona. [Panoramic of the South gallery]

Corridor of gallery, Exhibition: Jim Morphesis: Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth, Nov 18, 2017 - Feb 1, 2018, Curator: Michele Cairella Fillmore, W. Keith & Janet Kellogg Art Gallery, Cal Poly Pomona. [Panoramic of the South gallery]

Westside of back gallery, Exhibition: Jim Morphesis: Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth, Nov 18, 2017 - Feb 1, 2018, Curator: Michele Cairella Fillmore, W. Keith & Janet Kellogg Art Gallery, Cal Poly Pomona. [Panoramic of the back gallery]

Westside of back gallery, Exhibition: Jim Morphesis: Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth, Nov 18, 2017 - Feb 1, 2018, Curator: Michele Cairella Fillmore, W. Keith & Janet Kellogg Art Gallery, Cal Poly Pomona. [Closer look at the back gallery]

Jim Morphesis | Artist Lecture

Click video below for Jim Morphesis' artist lecture where he gives art historical insights about his work and answers questions from the audience.

Through archetypal and allegorically-infused subjects and themes, Morphesis offers an encounter with the existential, ontological, and ever-ephemeral search for life's meaning: the philosophical questions regarding the nature of "being" and the understanding of "self", both internally, and communally as a human race, emerge. This probing expedition confronts our own inescapable mortality and leads towards the always elemental human query of spiritual immortality. Symbiotically fused with Morphesis styles and techniques including abstraction, Cubism, assemblage, Abstract Expressionism, and Hyperrealism, Morphesis' six bodies of artwork also become a purposeful voyage through art historical disciplines of visual expression, while inevitably crossing through the self-imposed straights of auto-reflection, and the human collective's conscientiousness.

Jim Morphesis: Passion and Presence, Memento and Myth