He applied for Chelsea School of Art but was considered to be too young to attend nude life classes.

Between 1941 and 1942, having been rejected for military service on medical grounds, he attended Goldsmiths College, then toured the wilds of Pembrokeshire with Graham Sutherland in 1943.

After the war he travelled to the Isles of Scilly, Switzerland, Istanbul, Spain, Italy, but mainly Greece especially Crete, from 1946 to 1966.

His work was also reproduced in magazines such as New Writing, Horizon, and he has illustrated the books of Patrick Leigh Fermor.

[4] In 2021, Ian Collins published a full biography: John Craxton: A Life of Gifts (Yale University Press); this book won the Runciman Award in 2022.

Tony Britten wrote and directed the documentary film John Craxton - A Life Of Gifts in 2022.