John was born in Canada in 1929. He began to study pottery in Vancouver in 1956. He went to England and apprenticed with Bernard Leach (1958—61). He established Longland's Pottery in Devon in 1963 and stayed in England another twelve years.

He returned to Vancouver to teach at Vancouver School of Art and established Cold Mountain Pottery. He has travelled and taught workshops extensively in Canada and USA. He has lived and worked in Vancouver, Denver, and California.

He moved to New Mexico in 1987 and was engaged in the design and management of the teaching and workshop facilities at Santa Fe Clay.

John had a long hiatus from making pots and teaching due to "medical adventures", but is now teaching again at Santa Fe Clay and making pots in Abiquiu.

His work has been mostly stoneware and porcelain, sometimes earthenware or raku. Occasionally he makes large ceramic sculptures. He is an expert on clay and glaze chemistry. He has written a book "A Potter's Way to Understanding Glazes" (now out of print).