Noel Hodnett was born in Gatooma, (Kadoma) Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) and moved to South Africa at an early age. In 1968 Hodnett enrolled at the School of Fine Art at Rhodes University in Grahamstown (Makhanda), South Africa, and graduated with distinctions in painting in 1971. He joined the staff of the Fine Art Department at Rhodes as a Technical Assistant and Ceramics Instructor the following year. In 1975 Hodnett was appointed Head of Photography and in 1985, was appointed Head of Painting and Drawing. Hodnett held this position until the beginning of 1997 when he chose to leave academia and further his career as a professional artist in the International arena. Noel Hodnett currently lives and works in Vancouver, British Columbia.