John Thompson was born in 1954 in Driffield, Yorkshire, of an Irish father and a German mother. From an early age he showed an interest in art and natural history, which led him to specialise as a natural history illustrator for five years. John’s father spent a career in the RAF and much of John’s childhood was spent abroad in Africa, Indonesia and Singapore.

John’s passion for art saw him complete a BA in illustration at Manchester University followed by an MA at the Central School of Art & Design, London. After working as a commercial artist John branched out into painting, sculpture and teaching. He has a home in Ireland, which is a source for much of his landscape painting, and a studio in Horsham, West Sussex, where he is currently painting, sculpting and living with his wife and two children.