Julia Badal Graf
Tucson, Arizona
520-318-0989

Chocolat   
Image is 9 by 13 inches,  
13 by 17 inches framed.  
Watercolor on YUPO.  
$150 matted, $250 framed.  

ARTIST'S STATEMENT
Rocks, water, and natural forms and processes have always fascinated me. My education and career as a geologist/hydrologist taught me to look at my environment with a scientific eye and mind and to provide accurate and realistic descriptions. In 1999, after about 8 years as an after-hours dabbler in watercolor painting, I retired from my first career with the U.S. Geological Survey and began to paint seriously. As an artist, I am more interested presenting the mood of a scene or person and the movement and transient character of forms and processes than I am in creating a realistic image.

I typically use transparent watercolors and have recently discovered that painting on "hard" surfaces such as illustration board or polypropylene sheet (YUPO) allows me to get the spontaneous, fluid feeling that I have been striving for.

Still Life with Flowers and Coffee
Image is 14 by 10 inches, 20 by 16 framed.
Watercolor on YUPO.
$150 matted and $250 framed.

EDUCATION AND MAJOR WORK EXPERIENCE
B.A., 1967, Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr Pennsylvania (Geology Major)
M.S. (1972) and Ph.D. (1975), University of Illinois at Urban-Champaign (Geology-Sedimentology)
Hydrologist and Research Hydrologist, 1978-1999, U.S. Geological Survey, Urbana, Illinois, and Tucson, Arizona, specializing in river flow and sediment transport. From 1983 to about 1998, I collected and analyzed data in the Colorado River in Grand Canyon and worked with a team to develop flow and sediment transport models to predict the response of sand deposits in the Grand Canyon to flow releases from Glen Canyon Dam.

In about 1991, I took a one day course at Pima Community College given by Michael Cajero on "Creative Right-Brained Figure Drawing". That class was so much fun that I bought some more materials and started dabbling. A couple of years later, I took beginning watercolor with Deanna Thibault, also at Pima Community College, and not long after that began taking classes with her at her studio. She has been a great help in guiding me to develop my skills and in coaxing my own style to emerge. Since starting to paint seriously in 1999, I have taken workshops with Diane Maxey and Don Andrews that have also helped me to develop as an artist. I joined the Southern Arizona Watercolor Guild (SAWG) in 1997 as an Associate member, and in 2001 became a fully active member as a result of having a painting accepted into the Annual Show 2001 by Timothy Clark, the juror for the show. The association with more experienced artists in the Guild and demonstrations at Guild meetings have been very beneficial to my growth as an artist.

Oregon Coast
Image is 13 by 20 inches, 17 by 24 inches framed.
Watercolor on YUPO.
$150 matted, $250 framed.