Charles Alain was born in Johnson City, Tennessee in 1939. While growing up in Washington D.C., he attended Georgetown University, before his trip to Europe to begin his formal art instruction. Alain spent three years studying and painting in Paris, Florence,and Rome. Looking for a change in culture and surroundings, he made his way to Haiti where he lived and worked for two years as a volunteer for the Peace Corps. By Infusing his influences from the great French Impressionist masters and his involvement in Haitian customs, Alain's painting style evolved into what he described as a "synthesis of two forces." Today Alain lives with his wife and son in Northern California.