John D. Graham, born Ivan Gratianovitch Dombrovski (1886-1961) was a Russian emigré who came to New York in 1920. Once a lawyer and cavalry officer in the Russian army, upon his arrival in the United States he became a prolific artist, connoisseur and collector. An ardent devotee of Picasso's work, Graham began his painting career emulating the styles of synthetic cubism; later in his career, he found a wealth of inspiration in the characters of commedia dell'arte, Roman and Greek mythology and occult symbolism. Whether regaling his circle of artists friends with tales of being imprisoned in Poland with Czar Nicholas II, or declaring himself to be the human incarnation of Saint John, Graham was undoubtedly a man of intrigue. His predilection toward fantasy in life and in work has led to a distinct body of work that has had lasting impacts on modern American art.