U.S. Postal Service to honor Grand Portage artist George Morrison by issuing stamps featuring his artwork

 

Sometime in early 2022 the U.S. Postal Service will release a batch of new postage stamps featuring the artwork of the late George Morrison. The announcement came in a news release issued November 1.

“The new 2022 stamps are miniature works of art, designed to be educational and appeal to collectors and pen pals around the world,” said USPS Stamp Services Director William Gicker. “As always, the program offers a variety of subjects celebrating American culture and history. The vivid colors and unique designs of this year’s selections will add a special touch of beauty on your envelopes.”

In the press release it stated that George Morrison was, “One of the nation’s greatest modernist artists and a founding figure of Native American modernism. George Morrison (1919-2000) challenged prevailing ideas of what Native American art should be, arguing that an artist’s identity can exist independently from the nature of the art he creates. Morrison is best known for his abstract landscapes and monumental wood collages. A pane of 20 colorful stamps showcases five of Morrison’s artworks. The selvage features a photograph of the artist in his home studio. Antonio Alcalá was the art director and designer for this stamp pane.”

George was born in 1919 and lived in Chippewa City, about one mile out of Grand Marais. After high school he attended the Minneapolis School of Art and began a long career as a teacher and artist. He was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship and studied art in France in 1952.

During his career he worked as a professor for the Dayton Art Institute, Cornell University and Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). But despite his many travels, George had a strong connection with Minnesota and his home, and he came back and taught for more than a decade at the University of Minnesota, not only in its fine arts department but also in its American Indian studies. After he retired George came home to Grand Portage where he continued to make beautiful art in his Red Rock studio located on Lake Superior in Grand Portage.