Artist. Born the daughter of Elizabeth and Luther V. Baker in Nevada, Missouri. She attended Cottey College and the University of Missouri at Columbia. In 1895, she married Richard Morris, after which they both taught at Southwest Missouri State University at Springfield. She left her position in 1898 after the birth of a daughter. Illness precipitated a move to Roswell, New Mexico for the climate in 1912. In 1925, a severe case of influenza cost her her hearing, and after recuperating, she began a serious study of art. In 1926, she went to Paris to study portraiture. After her return home, she was commissioned for several portraits including both New Mexico Governor Richard Dillon and entertainer Will Rogers. The Rogers portrait, one of her most recognized, now hangs in the Claremore, Oklahoma Library. Better known than her portraits, however, are her paintings of the people of the Santa Fe, Zuni, Hopi, and Acoma pueblos, as well as landscapes and still-life works that reflect her adopted New Mexico home. Her work has been exhibited internationally, including at the Galeria d'Art du Montparnasse in Paris. Throughout her career, she offered art classes in Roswell, and she served twelve successive years as chairman of the art committee of the Roswell's Women's Club, which through her efforts, started a permanent art collection. Her health began to fail and remained poor for several years before she succumbed to a cerebral hemorrhage at the age of 71.
Artist. Born the daughter of Elizabeth and Luther V. Baker in Nevada, Missouri. She attended Cottey College and the University of Missouri at Columbia. In 1895, she married Richard Morris, after which they both taught at Southwest Missouri State University at Springfield. She left her position in 1898 after the birth of a daughter. Illness precipitated a move to Roswell, New Mexico for the climate in 1912. In 1925, a severe case of influenza cost her her hearing, and after recuperating, she began a serious study of art. In 1926, she went to Paris to study portraiture. After her return home, she was commissioned for several portraits including both New Mexico Governor Richard Dillon and entertainer Will Rogers. The Rogers portrait, one of her most recognized, now hangs in the Claremore, Oklahoma Library. Better known than her portraits, however, are her paintings of the people of the Santa Fe, Zuni, Hopi, and Acoma pueblos, as well as landscapes and still-life works that reflect her adopted New Mexico home. Her work has been exhibited internationally, including at the Galeria d'Art du Montparnasse in Paris. Throughout her career, she offered art classes in Roswell, and she served twelve successive years as chairman of the art committee of the Roswell's Women's Club, which through her efforts, started a permanent art collection. Her health began to fail and remained poor for several years before she succumbed to a cerebral hemorrhage at the age of 71.
Bio by: Iola
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