Erling Sjovold was born in Southern California where he lived until leaving the state for graduate study. He received his B.A. from U.C.- Berkeley and his M.F.A. from The School of the Art Institute in Chicago. Grants and residency awards he has received include the Marie Walsh Sharpe Art Foundation Space Program, Ragdale, The Center for Land Use Interpretation, Virginia Center for Creative Arts, Jessie Ball DuPont Summer Fellowship at the National Center for the Humanities, and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Fellowship. He has exhibited nationally and internationally. He has taught at SCAD, Indiana University- Bloomington, and is currently an Associate Professor at the University of Richmond in Virginia.