After preliminary studies at the Banff School of Fine Arts, Les Graff attended the Provincial Institute of Technology and Art (now Alberta College of Art + Design) and graduated in 1959 at age 23. He completed postgraduate studies at the Cranbrook Academy of Art, Michigan in 1960. He had his first solo exhibit at the Edmonton Art Gallery (now Art Gallery of Alberta), two years later. However, it took 29 years before he was able to fulfill his dream of painting fulltime. During that time, Graff made a major contribution to the visual arts in Alberta, beginning as Director of Arts and Crafts for the Province of Alberta in 1967 and retiring in 1991 as Director of Visual Arts for Alberta Culture. He built numerous programs to support the province’s artists and arts organizations.
Graff’s work begins with simple, plein air line drawings of the landscape which serve as the departure point for larger charcoal drawings and small studies done in the studio. These form the basis for his large abstract oil on canvas works. He has had numerous solo exhibitions at galleries including: Canadian Art Galleries Ltd., Calgary, AB (1978), the Mendel Art Gallery, Saskatoon, SK (1984) the Edmonton Art Gallery (now the Art Gallery of Alberta), Edmonton, AB (1962 and 1994), and at the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Banff, AB (2008). His work is included in the collections of the Glenbow Museum, the Art Gallery of Alberta, the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, and in numerous corporate and private collections.
(Alberta Foundation of the Arts)