A British-born American painter of landscapes. His mother married an American of the name of Grafton as her second husband, and he adopted the young McCune as his own. Robert grew up in the USA, studying at the Art Institute of Chicago and later in Paris, but at one stage returned to the Britain and assumed his birth-father's name.

He and his wife were in West Cornwall in about 1912, and Mrs Grafton acted as chaperone to the young Ruth ALISON prior to her marriage with Charles Walter SIMPSON. When she was called home due to family illness, another artist (& artist's wife) Gertrude HARVEY took her place as chaperone. Mr and Mrs Grafton were very popular with the Newlyn colony of artists, who upon their leave-taking gave a celebratory dinner (speaker: Alfred James MUNNINGS) and all at the dinner party accompanied them to the Penzance Railway Station. Robert Grafton was a prolific landscape artist, who latterly painted primarily in Illinois, and Louisiana. He painted three large murals (1918) as a part of the Illinois Centennial Celebration.