For Randall Graham, outdoor painting inspires a distinct, abstract style that resonates with collectors-especially when it rains
Written by Kristen Hampshire | Photography by Grant L. Gursky
Whenever it rains, Randall Graham receives several text messages from patrons and collectors of his “en rain air” works — imagery depicted from a window while the cloud’s tears are pitter-pattering. For Graham, the juxtaposition of abstract and reality creates a different perspective.
“I have two sides to my painting brain,” shared Graham, who teaches traditional painting fundamentals at Randall Graham Studio in Malvern, PA. Summers are spent with family in Bethany Beach — inspiration for his series of beach and umbrella scenes. His works have been on display at the Rehoboth Art League.
“If I’m working in a studio, it’s much more about thinking about composition, drawing a concept out, doing an underpainting. And I’m always very interested in how light affects the work. The expression of light in painting is totally magical.”
On the beach and outdoors, “it’s more of a challenge,” he added. “The light is moving. It could be windy or rainy. So, it’s more of a loose style.”
This is how his creative raindrop paintings were born.
With three children, one day when it was pouring outside, Graham’s plein air setup was put on hold. “But I didn’t have the next day available to paint,” he said. “So I sat in my van and watched the rain drops on my windshield and I didn’t plan. I just gave it a try and ended up loving how the drops created an abstraction of what I was viewing out of the windshield. And that became my calling card.”
Graham is classically trained, having studied at The Carline Academy of Fine Art in Kennett Square, PA. Realist painter Bo Bartlett also taught Graham and influenced his style.
PROVIDING AN ESCAPE
Randall Graham’s scenes from Bethany Beach take collectors away from their everyday world,
according to the artist.
“I’ve been painting my whole life, but full-time, professionally for about 10 years,” Graham said, sharing a love for teaching others — something his mentors noticed was a natural inclination for him. “While at the academy, other students would ask me to explain what the teacher was saying, so that led into opening my own atelier.”
Over the years, Graham’s works have been shown at Winterthur Museum, Garden and Library in Delaware, the Edgar Allan Poe Museum in Baltimore, and currently his plein air show is running through November at Wayne Art Center in his home state. He is also represented by Gallery 222 in Malvern.
As for his beach paintings created during the warm weather months in Bethany Beach, Graham says patrons appreciate how it “takes them out of their everyday world.”
“Every little thing I observe in the world, I’m learning something,” he said. “And once you create that in a painting and it lives with someone else, it wakes them up.” To learn more about Randall Graham’s works, visit RandallGraham.com. CS