John Collingham Moore was born in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England on 12 March 1829, the son of the painter William Moore (1790-1851) and brother of the painters William Moore, junior (c.1818-?), Albert Joseph Moore (1841-1893) and Henry Moore (1831-1895). He studied at the Royal Academy Schools in London from 1850. He subsequently worked as a portrait painter, notably of small children. During the 1860s he lived for a period in Italy where they painted. Moore was a frequent exhibitor at the Royal Academy in London from 1852 to 1880. His work was also shown at the British Institution, Dudley Gallery, and the Grosvenor Gallery in London. In 1865 he married Emily Simonds (1845–1911), the sister of the sculptor George Blackall Simonds (1843-1929).