Henry Reynolds Steer was born in London, England on 25 August 1858 and studied at Heatherley's School of Fine Art from 1879 to 1886. He subsequently lived and worked in Leicester for most of his life. He exhibited at Dudley Gallery, Dowdeswell Galleries, Royal Society of British Artists, Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours, Royal Society of Miniature Painters, Royal Institute of Oil Painters, and Royal Academy in London; Nottingham Museum and Art Gallery; the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool; Manchester Art Gallery; Royal Birmingham Society of Artists; and at the Royal Hibernian Academy in Dublin. He was elected a member of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters (RI) in 1884; and the Royal Society of Miniature Painters (RMS) in 1896.