Roy Grinnell was born in Santa Barbara, California.  As a child he enjoyed drawing airplanes and at the age of eleven he painted a Swedish P-51 shooting down a Me-109 for his Swedish grandmother.  When Roy graduated from Santa Barbara High School he decided to join the Navy and was stationed in Guam. After serving his time in the Navy he attended the Art Center School of Design in Los Angeles and graduated with honors.

 Preserving Aviation History on canvas is Roy Grinnell’s forte and it has brought him worldwide recognition as an Aviation Artist of the highest caliber. Roy’s documentation of aerial combat events has given him the honor of being the official artist of the American Fighter Aces Association, and the American Combat Airman Hall of Fame, Commemorative Air Force, Midland, Texas. 

 In 1999 Roy was the proud recipient of the RG Smith Award for Excellence in Naval Aviation Art at the National Museum of Naval Aviation, Pensacola, Florida. In 2003 Roy’s painting “Joe Foss – A Proud American” won First Place at the Naval Museum in Pensacola.  Roy was made an “Honorary Ace” by the American Fighter Aces Association in 2004. Roy was awarded the “Spirit of Flight” award and Lifetime Membership into the Commemorative  Air Force, Midland, Texas.  

 Roy’s original oil paintings have been displayed at the Duxford Air Show, UK,  Naval Air Museum,  Pensacola, Florida, The Polish War Museum in Warsaw, Poland, the US Air Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio, the National Aviation Hall of Fame, Dayton, the Normandie Niemen Museum, Les Andelys, France,  American Combat Airman Hall of Fame, CAF Headquarters, Midland, Texas, Le Bourget Museum, Paris, The Paris Air Show, Le Bourget, Museum of Flight, Boeing Field, Seattle, American Airlines, Dallas, Frontiers of Flight Museum, Dallas, and the Aeroclub de France, Paris. Most recently, Roy was the winner of the 2008 Horizon of Flight Aviation Art show for his painting “The Struggle Begins.” The event took place at CAE SimuFlite, Dallas, Tx , March, 2008.