Abbott Fuller Graves
Encyclopedia
Abbott Fuller Graves was an American painter and illustrator who specialized in decorative open air garden paintings and floral still lifes. His use of thick brushstrokes, bright colors, and natural light shows the influence of European impressionism.
Graves was born in Weymouth, Massachusetts
, on April 15, 1859, the son of James Griswold Graves and Eliza Nicholls (Fuller). Hoping to become an architect, Graves attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
but did not graduate. Graves went to Paris and Italy in 1884 to refine his skills as a flower painter. In Europe, he roomed with Edmund C. Tarbell
. After returning to Boston in 1885, Graves became a teacher at the Cowles Art School, where his friend Childe Hassam
was also on the faculty. The two painters undoubtedly influenced one another. In 1887, Graves returned to Paris to study figure painting at the Academie Julien.
Graves returned to Boston in 1891, and lived in the coastal town of Kennebunkport, Maine
, where he taught painting classes in oil and watercolor. He continued to visit there in later years, painting genre scenes featuring farmers, fishermen, firemen and old sea captains of Kennebunkport. Many of his portrayals of small-town life were reproduced on calendars and postcards.
After 1891, the majority of Graves's works depict gardens and floral landscapes, some including female figures. Some portray exotic gardens of Spain and South America. In 1891, he opened his own art school in Boston. The school later moved to Kennebunk, Maine. From 1902 to 1905, Graves was employed as a commercial illustrator for magazines in Paris. After 1922, Graves spent his winters in New York City, where he belonged to such organizations as the National Academy of Design, the National Arts Club, the Salmagundi Club and Allied Artists of America.
Graves died in Kennebunkport on 15 July 1936. At the time of his death, he had achieved wide acclaim as a specialist in garden painting.
Examples of Graves’s work can be found in public and private collections across the country, including the Mead Art Museum
at Amherst College
, the Arnot Art Museum, Elmira, New York; the Brick Store Museum, Kennebunk, Maine; Ball State University Museum of Art
, Muncie, Indiana; the Hermitage Foundation Museum, Norfolk, Virginia; and the Princeton University Art Museum
, Princeton, New Jersey.
Graves was born in Weymouth, Massachusetts
Weymouth, Massachusetts
The Town of Weymouth is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2010 census, Weymouth had a total population of 53,743. Despite its city status, it is formally known as the Town of Weymouth...
, on April 15, 1859, the son of James Griswold Graves and Eliza Nicholls (Fuller). Hoping to become an architect, Graves attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
but did not graduate. Graves went to Paris and Italy in 1884 to refine his skills as a flower painter. In Europe, he roomed with Edmund C. Tarbell
Edmund C. Tarbell
Edmund Charles Tarbell was an American Impressionist painter. He was a member of the Ten American Painters...
. After returning to Boston in 1885, Graves became a teacher at the Cowles Art School, where his friend Childe Hassam
Childe Hassam
Frederick Childe Hassam was a prolific American Impressionist painter, noted for his urban and coastal scenes. Along with Mary Cassatt and John Henry Twachtman, Hassam was instrumental in promulgating Impressionism to American collectors, dealers, and museums...
was also on the faculty. The two painters undoubtedly influenced one another. In 1887, Graves returned to Paris to study figure painting at the Academie Julien.
Graves returned to Boston in 1891, and lived in the coastal town of Kennebunkport, Maine
Kennebunkport, Maine
Kennebunkport is a town in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,720 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Portland–South Portland–Biddeford metropolitan statistical area....
, where he taught painting classes in oil and watercolor. He continued to visit there in later years, painting genre scenes featuring farmers, fishermen, firemen and old sea captains of Kennebunkport. Many of his portrayals of small-town life were reproduced on calendars and postcards.
After 1891, the majority of Graves's works depict gardens and floral landscapes, some including female figures. Some portray exotic gardens of Spain and South America. In 1891, he opened his own art school in Boston. The school later moved to Kennebunk, Maine. From 1902 to 1905, Graves was employed as a commercial illustrator for magazines in Paris. After 1922, Graves spent his winters in New York City, where he belonged to such organizations as the National Academy of Design, the National Arts Club, the Salmagundi Club and Allied Artists of America.
Graves died in Kennebunkport on 15 July 1936. At the time of his death, he had achieved wide acclaim as a specialist in garden painting.
Examples of Graves’s work can be found in public and private collections across the country, including the Mead Art Museum
Mead Art Museum
Mead Art Museum is an art museum associated with Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts and is a member of Museums10.The Mead Art Museum has a wide ranging collection of over 16,000 items, with a particular strength in American art, including notable works of the Hudson River School and woodcut...
at Amherst College
Amherst College
Amherst College is a private liberal arts college located in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Amherst is an exclusively undergraduate four-year institution and enrolled 1,744 students in the fall of 2009...
, the Arnot Art Museum, Elmira, New York; the Brick Store Museum, Kennebunk, Maine; Ball State University Museum of Art
Ball State University Museum of Art
The Ball State University Museum of Art is an art museum located in the Fine Arts building on the campus of Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana, USA....
, Muncie, Indiana; the Hermitage Foundation Museum, Norfolk, Virginia; and the Princeton University Art Museum
Princeton University Art Museum
The Princeton University Art Museum is Princeton University's gallery of art, located in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1882, it now houses over 72,000 works of art that range from antiquity to the contemporary period...
, Princeton, New Jersey.