Casper neon artist Connie Morgan’s journey through life turned dim last summer.
She didn’t know how it would ever get brighter. Her bills and a broken relationship seemed overwhelming. The future looked bleak.
Morgan’s role helping restore the famous 21-foot neon Tumble Inn Cowboy sign to its former glory and bending new glass to create glowing neon art and signs for other clients seemed more a burden than an exciting life purpose that had driven her since she was 17 years old.
Divorced for nine years, Morgan had broken up with a boyfriend who had helped support her artistry. A big neon project for a client on the West Coast became daunting.
“I think looking forward and seeing that I was going to have to do it all on myself just overwhelmed me,” she said. “I didn’t really take into consideration that I actually do have a lot of people to help me. I just felt really alone.”
Today, the single mother with one son still at home enjoys walking through the door of her art studio on Second Street most afternoons after her job at Casper College.
The Tumble Inn Cowboy sits in the back, all colorful with a grin on his face, and she feels ready to tackle the final stage of creating new and restoring old glass tubes to light him up for the world to see again.
He’s part of other studio projects that have come her way.
Morgan also has become a part-time counselor to others after making it out of that dark valley and onto the other side with a new vigor to meet every day. Her wisdom comes from experience.
'Discovered Myself'
And she’s not afraid to self-evaluate and share that discernment with whoever wants to read her social posts online.
“I think what I have discovered for myself over the years is that the more vulnerable that I am in ways that I can be vulnerable and speak about it in a non-self-serving way, people really relate to it,” she said. “People are really, really kind.”
On Sept. 18, Morgan posted a message explaining that at least once a week she gets asked about the Tumble Inn sign and when it will be completed.
Morgan has been part of the project along with Casper’s John Huff — who has overseen metal, electrical, and painting restoration — and the sign’s owner Jonathan Thorne, who bought the Tumble Inn property in Powder River to save the iconic 60-year-old piece of art.
In her post, Morgan told her readers that life had brought her “to her knees” and that “she lost focus, drive, and the will to live.”
Morgan said she never came to the place of planning to act on her feelings, but facing a new day “was a struggle.”
When a major art project had to be completed last summer for a client who had already paid, and people kept inquiring about other projects and the Tumble Inn Cowboy, the pressure was too intense.
“I see other artist friends of mine who get to work solely as artists and they have support at home,” she said. “Whether it’s a husband or wife who is bringing income from another source that maybe provides benefits. I just didn’t have that.”
Getting 'Real'
Morgan said she felt her ability to continue as a full-time artist was coming to an end. She had operated her own cleaning business and then the art studio for several years.
Instead of digging in to try and get through the struggle, Morgan said she decided she needed to go mountain biking or have a “last hurrah,” but the snowball kept rolling “until it took me out.”
She felt guilty about not being able to be more diligent.
Morgan realized she needed “to get real with myself.”
She also decided to open up about her struggle with friends.
“I wasn’t sharing any of my financial worries with many people because I was embarrassed,” Morgan said. “I have accountability. … Like, I was fully aware, but I felt kind of paralyzed. Once I started opening up to people.
"They were like, ‘What can we do to help?’ And you know, it made all the difference.”
She looked around for a job that could provide enough income to pay the bills, as well as one where she could just walk away from it at the end of the day and into her studio. She found a custodian job at Casper College.
Now the financial pressure has eased and Morgan is excited about unlocking her door every weekday afternoon at GloW Neon Studio in Casper’s Yellowstone District and becoming a creator once again.
New Hope
Even on her job at the college, her inner artist drove her to advocate for some color on the bare business building walls.
She spoke with the dean of the building about adding some art, and now a photographer friend and Morgan have their art on some of the walls.
“I curated my own show,” she laughed. “It has brightened up the space.”
Morgan also was asked by a Casper sign shop to use her skills to help with restoration on the iconic Lou Taubert Ranch Outfitters sign in Casper.
It was one of many pulsating neon signs for hotels and other firms in the downtown that made it like a “little Las Vegas,” she said.
She also is an advocate for establishing more community in a nation and region where independence is revered. Morgan said she has learned firsthand that it really does “take a village” sometimes to get through life.
Despite media stories and other talk and fears about AI claiming jobs, Morgan confidently sees a future where artists and craftsmen will still be in demand. She collaborates with many around the region.
“People really want to see craftsmanship,” she said. “They’re busier than ever. I’m busier than ever.”
Morgan’s own experience encourages her to advocate for other artists.
She asks those who know somebody in their life who is an artist working for themselves to check in on them and offer support in a way that can help.
Sharing their art on social media, having a conversation about how to help, and supporting their “dream” makes a difference, Morgan said.
“It does take people, friends, family to help alleviate the pressure. I think even more so in this modern world,” she said. “If you have a single mom, a single dad in your life, just remember that we don’t get through this life on our own.”
And for anyone who wants to ask her about completion of the Tumble Inn Cowboy sign, she has an answer.
“My goal is to have it finished by next May,” she said. “He’s sitting in my shop right now and he’s staring me down.”
Contact Dale Killingbeck at dale@cowboystatedaily.com
Dale Killingbeck can be reached at dale@cowboystatedaily.com.
