Ray trained at the St Alban’s School of Art and Medway College of Art in the 1950s, followed by two years National Service in the Royal Army Medical Corp.
He went on to be the Head of Art at Bishop’s Stortford High School for 33 years, also teaching painting and ceramics at Hertford Regional College for many years.
Executing his complex paintings is grounded in the extensive sketchbooks that he takes with him everywhere. As he develops the visual composition in his studio, the final image evolves into a mixture of pure design with Naturalistic Formalisation and Observation. He has many paintings in private collections around the UK and abroad.
As a conservator, Ray has cleaned and repaired damaged works of art in both oil and watercolour. He is a member of Bishop’s Stortford Art Society (previously the Chairman), as well as Courtyard Arts and Hertford Art Society.