Raphael Benedict's artist's signature and nickname . Benedict began signing his artwork with the word "Rapha" (a simple abbreviation of his surname) in the eighties when his art was starting to be well-known and of commercial potential in his hometown (Trois-Rivières) and region. The name was officially registered at the end of the eighties when he started his own graphic arts business. Later, in 1999, he integrated the name of the graphic arts business to his new endeavor, Rapha Multimedia, which was still an art-based business, but at this point, his art was mostly computer generated. He has been signing most of his paintings and drawings (tangible or artificial) with the signature "Rapha" ever since the eighties. Although that "Rapha" is, to Benedict, only a signature name that identifies him as an artist, some persons persisted in calling him "Rapha" when addressing him personally (according to an interview with the man himself, only one or two of his acquaintances ever really did).