Ken Howard studied at Hornsey School of Art between 1949 and 1953 and later at the Royal College of Art, winning a scholarship to Florence in 1958. He has had a prolific exhibition record with his first solo exhibition in Plymouth in 1955, followed by thirteen shows at the new Grafton Gallery, London and shows as far afield as Johannesburg. He became Official War Artist to Northern Ireland in 1973 and continued in this role all around the world up to 1980. He has been the recipient of countless awards in the decades since and his work is included in many key public collections, including that of the Imperial War Museum and the Ulster Museum. He was elected to the Royal Institute of Oil Painters in 1966, the Royal Watercolour Society in 1983 and the Royal Academy in 1991 and is now a Professor in the Royal Academy Schools of Art.