Roy Anthony Nockolds was born in London on January 24 1911. He was a self taught artist apart from taking some private lessons in figure drawing. He began sketching and drawing motoring subjects in the mid 1920's, contributing illustrations to Autocar, Motor and Motor Sport magazines. Nockolds was described as one of the pioneers of motoring art, and possibly the first to make the transition from illustrator to fine artist selling prints and paintings to the collector.

During the Second World War he worked for the Ministry of Information, served in the RAF, and became an official War Artist. Post-war Nockolds painted mainly retrospectively, although he did from time to time visit events and paint 'plein air'. The artist died in 1979. Following his death much of his studio contents where sold. The last of his studio contents being auctioned at the end of 1989.