Monjett Graham (born 1946) is an American contemporary visual artist and writer. His work addresses topics such as spirituality and African American history. Graham is known for his paintings, prints, and mixed media collage work.
Early life and education Monjett Graham, was born in 1946, in Omaha, Nebraska. His father was Richard Graham, a government meat inspector. He graduated in 1964 from Omaha North High School.
Graham obtained a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Graham then went on to complete his Masters degree in psychology and art in 1974 from the Lone Mountain College. Graham continued his education at the University of Toronto, the San Francisco Art Institute, and the Academy of Art University. 1970s Graham moved to San Francisco, California in October 1969, from Omaha, Nebraska. In the early 1970s he wrote a regular column on culture for the Sun-Reporter, an African American newspaper in San Francisco. He also contributed artwork to The Rip Off Review of Western Culture magazine comic; two pieces were published in the first issue. The first drawing was entitled "Urban Mood" created with a single woodcut and pencil. The second drawing was created with woodcuts only, three soldiers, entitled "Occupation". The subject matter, at that time was social commentary and surrealistic landscapes.
In 1970, Graham had his first one man exhibition, The Fire Cycle at Lone Mountain College in San Francisco. Graham became an exhibiting member of the BlackMan's Art Gallery on Haight Street in San Francisco, which was the first African American owned art gallery in Northern California. Fantasy Landscapes
In 1976, Graham moved from San Francisco to Sausalito, California, and then a year later moved to Mill Valley, California. In the mid-1970s Graham started "Fantasy Landscapes" series, which consisted of exotic or mysterious landscapes often punctuated by temples, pyramids or ancient buildings. Sometimes these paintings were accented with a single expressive character to embellish the scenario with specific attitude.
1980s Graham created portraits of historical, military leaders from around the world, using pencil and conte as a medium. These drawings were then applied to T-shirts and sportswear via silk screen. This fashioned a marketable commodity, which involved a mail order business, complete with a color catalogue, that supplied retail buyers and sports shops across America. The business, incorporated in 1981, known as the "California Corporation" advertised in major nationwide magazines such as Soldier of Fortune, American Handgunner and Guns and Ammo. Eventually, it also included illustrations of warplanes and military vehicles. The business due to increased competition, ended in the late 1980s. During this time Graham also expanded his artwork to a mixed media collage technique, which he used paper, thin bits of fabric on canvas. He would then experiment with larger objects, such as wood panel, leather, metal and plastic parts, as well as boots, and entire pieces of clothing. Starting out as abstract imagery, Monjett's mixed media collage technique evolved into illustrating animals and a variety of scenarios involving the human form.
1990s
Graham created several series of mixed media collage paintings throughout the 1990s. The first completed series was the "Music Series" which was first exhibited in 1991 at the Piazza Gallery in Sausalito, California. This is an ongoing series still in production, which portrays music in the United States as medium of stage entertainment. Other series done in the mixed media collage technique were the "Religion Series" and the "Sports Series" and the "Black Holocaust" series. The "Black Holocaust" series was exhibited in 1995 at Jahn Arts International in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The series illustrated the historical narrative of the West African slave trade.
Early 2000 works of art Graham has worked on the "Music Series" mixed media collage paintings and completed a series of paintings entitled "2010" which are all abstract expressionist paintings on canvas. Graham uses only three colors of acrylic paint with the "2010" series, and has worked with the paintings as if the canvas was an uneven, textured stone wall or cave interior.
2012 The ongoing study of Chinese calligraphy led Graham to incorporate that ancient system of pictograms into the design of his abstract expressionist painting. In September 2012, Graham exhibited, at the Joyce Gordon Gallery in Oakland California. These works of art were the first products of this unusual blending of style, technique and Chinese imagery into a series of colorful and rhythmic paintings. Completed in a specific order beginning with the abstract painting as a foundation, Graham integrated the calligraphy character into the painting as it neared completion. As the series progressed the calligraphy figures evolved as larger and more dominant features of the paintings. The last few works of the series allowed the calligraphy to be the foundation of the paintings and even overflowing off the canvases so that only a portion of the Chinese characters are discernible. This dominant feature of one or more calligraphy characters, combined with colorful abstraction is the current direction of Monjett's abstract expressionist paintings. From his newly opened studio in Beijing China, Graham is inspired, daily, to explore and open new pathways for the integration of Western Abstract painting and the ancient language and imagery of Chinese calligraphy.
Exhibitions YearExhibition Type ExhibitionsLocationNotes 2012SoloMonjett Graham (Transfiguration), Joyce Gordon Gallery, September 7, 2012Oakland, California 2011SoloMonjett Graham Selected Paintings, Cassandra Kersting Expressions Gallery, October 22, 2011, Sausalito, California Cassandra Kersting Gallery 2011SoloMonjett Graham Selected Paintings, Joe Hamer Salon, September 6, 2011Mill Valley, CaliforniaJoe Hamer Salon 2008GroupPaintings, Art and Soul Gallery, November 2008 Burlingame, California 2006Solo New Paintings 2006, paintings, O'Hanlon Center for the Arts, August 1 thru 31, 2006 Mill Valley, California 2005Groupgroup exhibition – paintings, Art and Soul Gallery, August 2005 San Francisco, California 2005Solo Selected Paintings and Prints, Fillmore Jazz Festival, July 2 and 3, 2005 San Francisco, California 2004Solo Recent Paintings, Marin Open Studios, May 7 and 8, 2005 Mill Valley, California 2004Group "Art and Politics", paintings and cartoons, O'Hanlon Center for the Arts, Oct 5 thru October 31, 2004Mill Valley, California2004Solo "Selected Paintings", paintings, dava dava salon San Francisco, CA., May 19 thru June 30, 2004 San Francisco, California2003Solo Recent Paintings: "Games and Luck", Toby's Gallery, April 5 through April 30, 2003 Point Reyes Station, California 2002Group "It Figures", Marin County Civic Center, October 21 – December 12, 2002 San Rafael, California 1999Solo "Man, Woman, and Mythology", solo exhibition of mixed-media paintings, Gallery Dog, August 7 through August 31, 1999 Eureka, California 1999 Heart of Care Inc. artist-in-residence grants four-week summer arts project, funded by the Nebraska Arts Council, July 5 through August 1, 1999 Omaha, Nebraska 1999Group "1999 Regional Invitational", sponsored by Humboldt State University First Street GalleryEureka, California 1999Solo Musical World, solo exhibition, mix-media paintings and giclee prints, Plaza Design, January 8 – February 28, 1999 Arcata, California 1999Group 7th Annual Marin Arts Council Members Exhibition, paintings and limited edition prints, Corte Madera Town Center, November 14 – December 17, 1999 Corte Madera, California 1999Group "Windows on the Waterfront", group exhibition paintings, Jack London Square, September 3 through December 31, 1998 Oakland, California 1998Group Annual Group Exhibition, paintings, Shamwari Gallery, September 3 through October 30 Oakland, California 1997Group "Windows on Art", group exhibition, Alameda Historical Society MuseumAlameda, California 1997Solo "Exploring Collage", solo exhibition, Mill Valley Art Commission at Mill Valley City Hall, June 1 through June 30, 1997 Mill Valley, California 1996Group group exhibition – paintings, HAND Contemporary Arts, October 24 through December 19, 1996San Francisco, California 1995Group Kwanza Exhibition, group exhibition, Hennepin County Government Center, December 3 through January 3, 1995Minneapolis, MinnesotaGroup"Jazz and Blues Night", group exhibition, Sunrise Gallery, October 14 through December 3 San Francisco, CaliforniaSolo"The Black Holocaust", Jahn Arts International, July 9 through August 30 Minneapolis, MinnesotaGroup"Intersecting Cultural Lines", Normandale Community College, January 26 through March 1 Bloomington, MinnesotaGroup"Collector's Delight", Sunrise Gallery, December 3 through January 14 San Francisco, CaliforniaSolo"Recent Paintings", Frank Howard Allen Peal Estate Office, November 7 through January 31Mill Valley, California1992Solo"Light & Rhythm 1992", paintings, Gallery Piazza, December 18 through March 15 Sausalito, CaliforniaSoloPaintings, Edward S. Curtis Gallery, February 28 through March 25 San Anselmo, California1990SoloRecent Work, Merced College Art Gallery, September 4 through 21 Merced, California1990Two personMixed Media: Two Perspectives: Monjett Graham and Shirley Rae Parini, Pro-Arts Tempspace Gallery, July 11 through August 25Oakland, California1990Group, juried"Exhibition ‘90", Sun Gallery, April 18 through 23 Hayward, CaliforniaGroupPaintings, Hatley Martin Gallery, January 11 through February 28San Francisco, CaliforniaGroupPaintings, Fort MasonSan Francisco, CaliforniaSoloPaintings and Prints, Metes and Bounds Sausalito, CaliforniaGroupPrints, San Francisco Artists CooperativeSan Francisco, CaliforniaSoloPaintings, New Day GallerySan Francisco, CaliforniaGroupPaintings, Union Street Artist's Co-op San Francisco, CaliforniaGroupPaintings, Brockman Gallery Los Angeles, California1974GroupAfro-American Culture Week, Napa Valley CollegeNapa, California1973GroupLes Ballet Africains, paintings, BlackMan's Art GallerySan Francisco, CaliforniaPaintings, Sun GallerySan Francisco, California1971SoloThe Fire Cycle, paintings, prints, and drawings, Newman Hall GalleryBerkeley, California1970GroupThe Fire Cycle, paintings and woodcuts, Lone Mountain College San Francisco, CaliforniaGroup Paintings, Richmond Art Center Richmond, California
References
External links Monjett Graham, at the Joyce Gordon Gallery San Francisco Gate, Visual Art August 17, 2006 Exhibits The Rip Off Review of Western Culture, First Issue Artist uses startling effects, Merced County Times, August 30, 1990 Artist turns trash into treasure, Merced Sun Star, August 31, 1990 Musical sinspiration rings true in paintings by Monjett Mill Valley Record, March 6, 1991 Art Notes, Marlene Tait, Mill Valley Literary Review, Summer 1991 Local artist combines "Light and Rhythm" to produce eclectic and original paintings, Marlene Tait, March 3, 1992 Visions of Light, Marlene Tait, Mill Valley Literary Review Spring 1992 Mixed media gets mythic, Humboldt Times Standard August 6, 1999 Pop Icons, Mythology And The Soul Humboldt Beacon August 12, 1990