Thomas Keating was born in London in 1917, the son of a house painter and craftsman. His flair for painting came at an early age when he joined his father and elder brothers in the building trade. Keating studied at the Croydon School of Art and at Camberwell. After the war, during which he was employed in Naval Intelligence, he became a full time student at Goldsmith’s college and then went on to lecture in art at St Andrew’s College, London. His somewhat eclectic endeavors afforded him a unique opportunity to learn the many techniques and styles which would facilitate his later work as restorer and imitator. Best known today for his witty and sometimes controversial imitations of the great Masters, he should be remembered also for his extensive conservation of paintings and in particular his work as chief restorer on the murals at Marlborough House.