Meet the Artist: Morgan King

If you were to ask any staff member or contributor of The Mountain Times if he or she felt much like an artist with their work on the paper, I’m sure the grit and grind of the industry would encourage a resounding “no.” And while the act of journalism, investigative reporting, and ad development take their creative mindset to an artistic level with the maneuvering of words, shapes, and colors, one of our team members goes above and beyond the call of artist, not just with his work on The Mountain Times, but his side project as well. That Mountain Times staff member and artist is our very own Morgan King.

As a senior graphic designer for Active Media [parent company of The Mountain Times], King is responsible for the look, feel, and overall layout of the paper. Creating unique designs for advertisements, King’s visions for Active Media’s publications can be seen on various platforms within the organization. 

While the concept of art has surrounded King in almost every stage of his life, the work he does outside of his profession is just as unique and special. “I’ve been drawing since I was probably three or four and have continued doing so over the 40ish years since,” King said. “I started out traditionally, mostly just pencil and paper, but transitioned to digital art in my late teens and early 20s,” King added. With the help of ever growing and evolving technological advancements in the graphic design world, King was able to transfer his paper and pencil skills to the computer, taking advantage of the many benefits this new world art had to offer.

“I worked off a PC using Photoshop, then graduated to a drawing monitor,” King said. “You literally draw on the screen with that, but I work off my iPad now, since the drawing experience is so phenomenal. I love having the power of that undo button and being able to endlessly iterate without having the permanence of traditional media. I primarily illustrate, but also went to school –twice – for graphic design,” King added.

Although King “practices” art on the side, he honed his professional abilities while attending Illinois Central College for graphic design, Southern Illinois University for art with an emphasis on drawing, and Chemeketa Community College for visual communications. His creativity and intrinsic ability to take ideas from paper to screen have not only given him professional fulfillment, but has helped to shine a light on a talent that often gets overlooked. “It [art] really enriches nearly everything we do, but people look past it and dismiss its value,” King said. “I keep creating, though, because it is so personally fulfilling and I love surprising people with the skill I’ve worked on all my life,” King added.

King’s graphic design work can be seen throughout The Mountain Times, as well as The Clipper Times via Active Media. King has also been published by The Oregon Wine Press in 2019. And while many of my colleagues would doubt their own personal artistic capabilities, opening up a fresh Mountain Times is proof enough of the talent, dedication and unique artistic talents of King and the rest of our team.