James Arthur Merriam (1880-1951) was born in Chatham, Ontario, Canada on March 18, 1880. He studied with the academically-trained artist Francis Petrus Paulis (1862-1933) at the Detroit Art Museum, now Detroit Institute of Arts. Paulis was founder of the Detroit Art Academy.

Merriam worked in Detroit as a commercial artist before settling in Los Angeles in 1920. After establishing a studio, he made painting forays into the desert near Palm Springs, the redwoods, the high Sierra, Monterey, Yosemite, and Arizona. Merriam died in Los Angeles on September 8, 1951. He was the father of artist Eleanor Merriam Lukits (1909-1948) who was the wife of artist Theodore N. Lukits (1897-1992).

James Arthur Merriam is listed in Davenport’s Art Reference, Edan M. Hughes, Artnet, Askart, Who's Who of American Art. Biography generously provided courtesy of Edan M. Hughs: Artists in California,1786-1940.