About the Artist
David D. Morris is a mid-west abstract digital artist, retired award-winning commercial and fine art photographer, community leader, flower and vegetable gardener, jazz lover, and collaborator. His advertising photography has been seen and published in ads worldwide. Based in Kansas City, he has practiced his craft since the early 1980s. He primarily focused on high-end advertising photography and video, specializing in food and people photography for clients such as AMC Theaters, Tyson Foods, Hostess Brands, and The Hershey Corporation. His work has been published in the Kansas City Star, USA Today, Martha Stewart, Gourmet Magazine, on billboards in Time Square, and downtown L.A. and San Fransisco. Although he recently retired from advertising photography, he’s shifted his focus to abstract digital art.
Before retiring, David and his wife owned Studio 2131, where they ran their businesses, David Morris Photography and Kansas City Event Space. Early on, David’s love for photography led him to study fine art photography at Johnson County Community College. When not engaged in some form of artistic endeavor, David loves listening to jazz, gardening, and being involved in his community. David and his wife have both vegetable and flower gardens and have been featured on the Shawnee Garden Tour three times. He is a former Shawnee City Councilman, Chairman of the Crossroads Arts District, Co-founder of Rebuilding Together Shawnee, and Kansas City Society for Contemporary Photography Board Member. David's been awarded the Kansas City, Missouri, Urban Hero Award, the Shawnee Citizen of the Year Award for his civic leadership, and numerous advertising photography awards.
David is currently working on a body of digital abstract art that has evolved from his love for jazz. He is digitally illustrating what he experiences when listening to jazz. David uses various computer software to develop, compose, retouch, refine, and print his work. This process can take weeks to execute and refine for just one image before he feels it expresses what he visually experiences when listening to a particular song. The Cerbera Gallery represents David’s abstract visual art. David’s work has been displayed at the Tim Murphy Gallery, 80 Santa Fe Gallery, Kansas City Artist Coalition, Johnson County Library, and InterUrban Arthouse.
Artist Statement
For over three decades, I sculpted light and shadow like a master conductor, shaping visions within the polished confines of advertising and fine art photography. But beneath the veneer of glossy perfection, a different rhythm resonated. The improvisational spirit of jazz, a love that simmered since my teens, beckoned me toward a new artistic exploration. Retiring wasn't a creative finale; it was an artistic reboot, an opportunity to trade the staged tableau for the unfurling canvas of abstraction. Each piece becomes a natural echo of my inner feelings, ignited by the mystery of improvised melodies and raw emotions that pulse through jazz. It's like stepping into a kaleidoscope of sound, where every note refracts into a dance of light and form. Pixel by pixel, my digital brushes illustrate the syncopated rhythms of a guitar's mournful cry, the playful staccato of a trumpet's riffs, and a double bass's deep, pulsing heartbeat. My tools are an orchestra of technology, but Edward Weston's words resonate: "It's an illusion that art is created by the tools we use. Art is created with our eyes, hearts, and minds." While whispers of other artists' influence might linger in the margins, my voice blares through the vibrant chaos, a testament to the unique landscape born from my soul and the soul of jazz.
My abstract art isn't just an artistic exploration; it's a visual code waiting to be deciphered. Melodies morph into swirling expanses of color, harmonies pulse in the interplay of light and shadow, and emotions weave intricate tapestries of texture and form. It's a dance of contention and cohesion, mirroring the very essence of jazz where chaos yields to a breathtaking, unexpected symmetry.
I have a condition called Dyslexia. Once a stumbling block in the realm of words, it has become a springboard for visual articulation. It also grants me a unique lens, an obscured superpower that translates the torrent of emotions within me into vibrant geometries and spontaneous rhythms. Just as a bluesy bass line paints sounds that blend and sharpen, my art combines emotions onto the digital canvas.
When you encounter these visual improvisations, I hope a similar vision ignites within you. May your eyes see the echo of a saxophone's wail in a twisting line, your heart feel the bass's mournful hum in a deep shade of color, and your mind dance to the unspoken language that bridges my vision and yours. Come, lose yourself in the kaleidoscope of my mind, and let's rediscover the shared heartbeat of art and improvisation, where the glossy fades and the groovy takes flight.
© David D. Morris, 2024, All rights reserved. All images on this website are copyrighted and may not be used for any purpose without the express written consent of David D. Morris dba David Morris Digital Art. Unauthorized use of these images, including for training AI models, is strictly prohibited and may result in legal action.