‘Master of Light’ Review: Rebuilding Through Rembrandt

New York Times

In the documentary “Master of Light,” George Anthony Morton recalls a difficult upbringing in Kansas City, Mo. “If there was a neighborhood drug house, that was where we lived,” he says. His struggling mother, Tela, had him at 15. But Morton says that he “always escaped through art” and that teachers recognized his potential and encouraged his talent.

His chance at becoming a professional artist was deferred: He spent his 20s in prison on a drug conviction. Still, he painted while incarcerated. Once released, he trained at the American branch of the Florence Academy of Art. He says he has a feeling of survivor’s guilt.