Robert Wadsworth Grafton, born in Chicago in 1876, did his studies at the Chicago Academy of Design. He continued his work at this newly established institution soon to be known as the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Later, like many of his colleagues, Grafton traveled to Europe to study at the Académie Julian in Paris. Anxious to expand his art horizons he continued his studies in Holland and England, most likely between 1895 and 1905. Fine art in Europe was in a state of flux but this was an exciting period in the history of European art. Post-impressionist developments, including pointillism, neo-impressionism, Symbolism, and the decadent movement, were all flourishing, along with the earliest form...