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Morris Cole Graves In a baby book, Graves’ mother recorded his first word as “see.” In looking at a life of work it seems that this is what he has asked himself and us as viewers to do all along—to see. To look beyond the surface of the subjects and catch sight of their inner nature. What follows is a biographical sketch of the artist Morris Cole Graves. Arriving in trying times, the sixth of eight children, Graves was born on the 28th of August, 1910. Earlier that year Graves’ father had uprooted the extended family from Seattle, Washington to claim land under the Homestead Act. Graves was their only child to be born at the Homestead in Fox Valley, Oregon. Living in a barren and isolated area, they fought to keep the family fed and warm in the “sub-zero wind” that blew consistently. That first winter a bout of pneumonia kept Graves inside and under the careful eye of his mother and brothers. By the time he had spoken his first word the family had abandoned the Oregon homestead, returned to Seattle, and struggled with the financial difficulties the adventure had cost them. Graves’ first illness as an infant was a precursor to many that followed as he was considered a “sickly” child. As a result, it is likely Graves spent many hours indoors as a young child left to entertain himself. Throughout his adolescence Graves developed his abilities as a gardener and began to make watercolor paintings and drawings of the developing architecture. In 1928, before graduating from high school, Graves shipped off as a merchant sailor with the American Mail Service and made several trips to Asia and Japan. It was here he was introduced to the influence of nature in Japanese art, gardens, architecture and thought and became interested in the Eastern religions and the cultural practice of integrating one’s life with beauty. Upon returning to the States, Graves visited Los Angeles, San Diego, New Orleans and Beaumont, Texas—where he graduated from high school before returning to Seattle. Primarily a self-taught artist, Graves and other artists of the time would go into the streets, neighborhoods and wilderness of Puget Sound to draw and paint, expanding their skills and understanding by creating a practice of studying and seeing. In addition, they would share ideas about art and life, all of which served to create a dynamic arts education. It was during the 1930’s and the early 1940’s that Graves developed many close life-long friendships with artists that provided camaraderie and encouragement in developing his skills, artistic vision and focus. In 1934 he set up an art studio with fellow Northwest School painter Guy Anderson. He began to paint for the Federal Arts Project in 1936 and had his first one-person exhibition at the Seattle Art Museum. He and other painters worked sporadically for the Museum, which left them time to pursue their own artwork. For them, a career in the arts wasn’t about making it ‘big’ but a lifetime commitment to using the arts in gaining understanding of the world. Graves made trips to New York and Puerto Rico, exhibiting his art from the Federal Arts Project in New York and Washington D.C. in 1939, and was chosen by Dorothy Miller to exhibit in “18 Americans from 9 States” at the Museum of Modern Art in 1941. In 1942 he was invited to exhibit at the Whitney Museum of American Art Annual Exhibition which confirmed his recognition as a nationally significant painter. He went on to exhibit in each of the Whitney’s Annuals from 1942 to 1967. In the late 1950’s Graves moved to Ireland,
an area that has a climate similar to that of the North Coast. He
continued to draw, paint and travel before settling in Humboldt
County in 1964 and resided here until his death in 2001. For More Information:
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