Born in Cardiff in Wales, Merlyn Evans grew up near Glasgow, and from 1927 studied at the Glasgow School of Art. In 1930, he exhibited at the Royal Scottish Academy and the Glasgow Institute of Fine Art. He gained a Scholarship to the Royal College of Art and throughout his career he made etchings and aquatints and sculpture as marble carvings and bas-reliefs. His dedication to painting however, is expressed in his continued productions even during his service in World War II. As a soldier in North Africa, Syria and Italy, he was involved in heavy fighting. His works are often haunted with overt political statements, and more frequently, with images of his disquiet.