Bio
Michael Graves is a nationally-recognized, plein-air artist based in central Massachusetts. Over a 35-year career, Graves has received over 85 awards and ten medals and has been featured in numerous books and publications, including the New York Times, American Artist, and the Best of Oil Painting. He was recently inducted into the Guild of Boston Artists and is a long-time member of the Rockport, Hudson Valley, Old Lyme Art, and North Shore Art Associations and Allied Artists Professional League.
Painting in oils and working on location, Graves’s work has been displayed in dozens of galleries throughout the United States and is included in the permanent collection of the Butler Institute of American Art in Youngstown, Ohio. His paintings were selected eight times for the National Arts for the Parks competitions of the Top 100 Paintings of National Parks.
Graves had little formal artistic education, but for over 30 years he was mentored by the late Cape Ann artist, Bernard Corey (1914-2000), and he is today a friend and frequent painting companion of many of the most celebrated landscape artists of New England.
Artist’s Statement
Although Graves has painted many of America’s most scenic national parks and iconic landmarks, his favorite subjects are the simple, everyday scenes of rural, small-town, America and especially of his beloved New England. From rustic, snow covered barns, and bucolic vistas, to serene, sandy beaches, and rocky, unforgiving coasts, Graves captures on canvas, in vivid colors and masterful depictions of light and shadow, all that is genuine, honest, and timeless in the American landscape.
In a time of persistent change, his paintings remind us of all that is constant and enduring, the hardworking values of the farm and the factory, the sanctity of faith and family, the predictability of the seasons, and the simple pleasures of enjoying time spent amidst rolling mountains, and crashing waves, endless forests, and bountiful fields. It is an artist’s unique and impressionist rendering of a country that Graves has loved for more than six decades.
Website
http://mikegravesgallery.com
