Photography by Bruce Morton
On view March 2nd through June 28th, 2025
West Central Illinois. The people. The place. The prairie. This is what Bruce Morton began photographing in 2007 after returning to his childhood home of Bowen, Illinois. Morton explored the 16 counties of Forgottonia with his camera and began documenting what had changed and what remained. He photographed the area’s architecture, its seasons, his friends, the landscape, farms and community of people. He often turned his camera to the audience and documented the people gathered at auctions, holiday parades, festivals, fairs and other social events. Morton subsequently published three photography monographs on Forgottonia between 2013 and 2018. This exhibition includes images from several of his series including his Forgottonia, Prairie Land, and Lost Home series and his most recent, Prairie Man, Prairie Woman. These large format black and white environmental portraits of his friends are straightforward and direct, humble yet dignified. Morton stated in his third book “I don’t mean to paint a depressing picture of Forgottonia for I find it a beautiful, safe, and peaceful place to live”. Morton has given us a loving portrait of shared communal experiences and provided a glimpse into the past and present of many small midwest towns and rural communities known to many as Forgottonia.
About Bruce Morton
Bruce Morton received his Bachelor’s degree from Southern Illinois University and a Master of Fine Arts degree from Arizona State University. Morton has participated in numerous exhibitions in the United States as well as Great Britain for over fifty years. His works have been featured in online galleries and published in several blogs such as Lenscratch and F-Stop Magazine. In 2024 Morton’s lifetime collection of photographs and negatives were accepted for storage, viewing, and research at the Briscoe Center for American History at the University of Texas, Austin.
Special thanks to the artist Bruce Morton and Paula Gillen, photo editor and consultant