Christiana Morgan

 

    Christiana Morgan was a fascinating and intricate woman. When it came to her artwork, expressed through her visions, each piece was carefully made and unique in its own way. Her art and talent were displayed throughout her home at the time, which is now called Morgan's Tower. Whether it was her custom-designed stained glass windows in the study or the dyad carefully placed in the metal railings, her art was displayed all over her home.

    Growing up, Christiana was closer to her father, who was from Maine and enjoyed gardening outside. She had an okay relationship with her mother, but their relationship was never as strong as her and her fathers. Christiana always loved being outside alongside her father and accompanying him in gardening and taking care of the property. She attended two private schools for her high school years, then went to nursing school. After she finished school, she became a nurse to help soldiers in WW1. She met her husband, William Morgan, around 1919, and they married shortly after they met. 

    Between 1921 and 1924, Morgan studied at the Art Students League of New York and became more assertive in painting, wood carving, and sculpting. In the 1920s, she became involved with a club in NYC and became interested in psychology. Her interest in psychology led her to Carl Jung. Jung's guidance engaged Morgan in active imagination and producing drawings of her visions. Jung later used her work in his "Visions Seminars." Jung regarded her as a "pioneer woman" and considered her visions exemplary of the individuation process.

    In 1923, Morgan met Henry Murray, a biochemist at the time. He later became a prominent psychologist at Harvard University. Morgan and Murray had both professional and personal relationships. Together, they co-directed the Harvard Psychological Clinic. In 1934, they created the Thematic apperception test (TAT), a psychological test designed to reveal underlying emotions, concerns, and motives and how people see the world. Many of Morgans's drawings from her visions were used in the TAT test, and she was credited as a co-author. 

    After being inspired by Jung's "Bollingen Tower," Christiana created her own tower on the marsh in Newbury. The tower served as a sanctuary for her work in art and psychology. It featured all her artwork, carving, and stained glass, symbolizing her journey towards self-discovery. Later on in Morgans's life, she faced health challenges, which led to numerous surgeries as well as her becoming an alcoholic. In 1967, she was on a trip with Henry Murray and drowned to her death in the U.S Virgin Islands. Despite her contributions to psychology, her male colleagues often underappreciated Morgans workes. Christiana's work continues to inspire discussions on the role of women in psychology and the importance of acknowledging their contributions.