John Beardman was born in Youngstown Ohio December 5, 1937. He moved with his family outside Warren at the age of twelve. He attended Case Institute of Technology (now Case-Western Reserve) and graduated from Oberlin College. He also attended the Sorbonne and Stanley Hayter's "Atelier 17" in Paris. He holds two advanced degrees from Southern Illinois University. A painter since he began on the family farm at the age of nineteen, he earned his living as art professor at: the University of Connecticut, Cranbrook Academy of Art, and Oakland University from 1961 to 1990. Since 1990 he has dedicated himself solely to painting in his loft at 430 East 10th Street in Manhattan.

He has exhibited at various galleries, including one person exhibitions in New York City at: M55 Art, NYC, (2011 and 2012),Denise Bibro Fine Art, Allan Stone Gallery, O.K. Harris, the Jayne H. Baum, and 55 Mercer galleries. Group show include Noho Gallery, M55 Art (2013) In Louisville, Kentucky he has exhibited at the Brownstown Gallery; in Birmingham Michigan at Art Space. He has works in both public and private collections including HDH Corp, John Hart, NBC, Best Products, Harry Bober, Allan Stone, Florence Barron, Cornel West, Cranbrook Academy of Art and the Detroit Institute of Arts. In addition he has received numerous creative artist's grants and fellowships.

Reviews include: Ann LANDI in March 1999 Art News, Grace Glueck, New York Times, Feb 26, 1999, Art in Review; Karen Chambers in Review Magazine, June 15, 1998; Ken Johnson, New York, Times, Dec 12, 1997; Michael Brenson, New York Times,1974; Jean Herskowitz, Cover magazine, October 1998