William Packer
In 1995 William Packer, arguably our most respected art critic, had this to say about Morgan’s work:
“…as a painter, he is nothing if not brave. To take on first the portrait on the grand scale, and then the full-blown conversation piece is to set oneself not merely against the standards of one’s contemporaries, but against the masters in the great tradition. If to do so is then inevitably to invite particular criticism, both fair and unfair, it is also to command respect.
Now he is showing what he can do with the narrative and the subject painting, and again he confronts the issue head on and on a scale ambitious enough to invite a fall. It is hardly necessary to say that he stays well on his feet.
At Agnew’s in 1996, amidst the swirls and extravagances that characterize much of his larger canvases, a magnificent and relatively modest (for Morgan) history painting entitled ‘Prisoner Bonhoeffer, Follow Me’ emerged triumphant. The spartan manner in which this canvas is executed and the moment selected to reveal one of the last war’s greatest outrages, shown as a bureaucratic resolution, in contrast with the extravagance and splendour of the surrounding canvases, is astonishing. It provides us with a partial key to Morgan’s greatness. His ability to express such profound inhumanity with such economy, alone ensures that Howard J. Morgan will be acknowledged as one of the masters of the 20th century.”[/vc_headings]