Morris David Dorenfeld

SPRUCE HEAD - Maine Tapestry Artist Morris David (Morrie) Dorenfeld passed away peacefully at Sussman House in Rockport ME on Monday morning, February 13, 2023, one month shy of his 86th birthday. The youngest of three brothers, Morrie was born at Mt. Sinai Hospital in Chicago March 30, 1937, to his mother Rose (Rosenfeld) Dorenfeld and father Hyman Dorenfeld. Morrie is predeceased by brother Arnold (Arnie) Tilden Doren, his parents, and his life-long partner, Robert Francis Davis. He is survived by his brother Neil Melvin Doren as well as by cousins Dennis Ross and David Ross and their extended families.
Morrie graduated as a painter from the Art Institute of Chicago with a BFA in 1960. Soon after, he moved to New York. He lived on Staten Island and attempted to break into the Abstract Expressionist art scene while taking courses at the Art Students League. In 1962, he began summering in Provincetown, where, in 1964, he met his life-long partner, Robert Francis Davis. Together, they moved to Freemont, NH in 1967, then to Spruce Head, Maine when Bob retired in 1978.
Morrie began his career as a weaver when he moved to Maine. His first tapestry came off his own loom in January 1980, beginning his love affair with the medium. He brought his training as a painter to compositions noteworthy for their bold use of color. In 43 years, Morrie created 146 large tapestries, "paintings in fiber," and was working on Tapestry 147, the fifth in his Light at the End of the Tunnel series, at the time of his death.
Morrie was known and loved by so many in the midcoast for his self-effacing sense of humor, his graciousness, his ability to know everyone's name, his frugality, his love for gardening, and his genuine interest in others. He was a popular volunteer at Pen Bay Hospital and won awards for his volunteerism. He was also a regular at Qi Gong and cribbage games at the Jackson Memorial Library in Tenants Harbor. His lovely gardens were featured in Country Living Gardener in 1996 and on several garden tours in support of The Georges River Land Trust.
Always central to Morrie's life in Maine was his loom. His tapestries were displayed in over 100 exhibitions in Maine, throughout New England, and nationally. He was included in several Maine Coast Artist juried shows, the American Craft Museum New York City show in 1985, the 2017 juried Central Maine Contemporary Art (CMCA) biennial, and the Mesa, AZ Contemporary Art Museum juried exhibition. The latter led to his one person show at Mesa Contemporary Art: "Color Is King!" in 2020. One of Morrie's tapestries was included in the US State Department Arts in the Embassies program. He has been represented for the past 15 years by Caldbeck Gallery in Rockland, which will present a retrospective of his work in May 2023, that Morrie had been involved in planning.
The past several months had been particularly exciting for Morrie, even as his health posed increasing challenges. He had two exhibitions, one at Caldbeck Gallery and another at Granite Gallery in Tenants Harbor. He also was energized by working on a book about his life and work. The Tapestries of Morris David Dorenfeld: Paintings in Fiber, published by Custom Museum Publishing, will be available at Sherman's Bookstores throughout Maine and on Amazon by early March. Morrie also assured that the Morris David Dorenfeld Foundation was established to protect his work and promote the importance of fiber art.
As Morrie often wrote in his exhibition notes, "The creation of art is an act of faith--a celebration of life. It proclaims, 'We are here. We were here. We mattered. We matter!'" Morrie mattered to all who came to know him; he realized in the last years of his life, "I didn't know I had so many friends!" A celebration of his life is being planned for the spring. Donations to honor Morrie can be made to the Morris David Dorenfeld Foundation, c/o Art Centric Consulting, PO Box 162, Port Clyde, ME 04855.
Those who would like to share a story or memory with the Dorenfeld family may do so at their Book of Memories at www.bchfh.com.
Arrangements are in the care of Burpee, Carpenter and Hutchins Funeral Home 110 Limerock Street, Rockland, Maine.2b:[]
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