Born in England, Hooper also spent time in his youth in China, and served as a captain in the British Army in India in 1944. Hooper was educated at the
Royal College of Art and Bournemouth College of Art (now
The Arts Institute at Bournemouth), and studied with sculptor
Jacob Epstein. After teaching at the
University of Natal in South Africa from 1956 to 1962, he moved to
New Brunswick, Canada, where he lived for the rest of his life, for many years working as a school teacher and administrator before devoting himself full-time to art in 1974. With her he had four children and founded Hooper Studios, a centre for art and art education in
Hampton, New Brunswick. ==Works on public display==