Growing up in a small town in Central Utah, Jim Morgan gained interest in the outdoors, wild animals, and birds. Most of his time was spent hunting and fishing. Those early adventures in the marshes and mountains instilled in him an appreciation and interest in nature. Most of his artistic inspiration comes from the wildlife in the rural area known as Cache Valley, where he currently resides. Morgan is passionate about the importance of the natural landscape in his compositions. While he emphasizes the backgrounds, he seeks to achieve a balance between the subject and its environment. This harmony is further aided by the play of light and shadow and subtle color changes. Morgan is intrigued by his observations of nature and concentrates on the effects of light on these elements. The resulting array of colors adds to nature’s ever-changing moods. Tom Wharton, a writer for a profile in Sporting Classics once wrote, “Morgan searches for different ways to express the beauty he sees in nature. Some would rank Morgan among the world's best contemporary wildlife artists. His style, however, is not realistic or detailed, which has proven so popular among collectors. Instead, he plays with light, brush strokes, and texture much like an impressionist. His art captures the feeling of a moment in the wild, where the movement of a well-camouflaged bird or animal might be all a hunter sees out of the corner of his eye.” Jim Morgan was the featured artist at the Steamboat Art Museum’s retrospective exhibition “Moments In The Wild” from 2018 to 2019. He had over 70 paintings spanning his 40 year career included in this event.