Born in 1928 in Forest Hills, New York, Joseph Bowler, Jr. studied at the Art Students League, New York. He taught at the Parsons School of Design from 1968-72 and has been named "Artist of the Year" by the Artist Guild of New York.

Portraits of Rose Kennedy for the Albert Einstein Hospital and Richard Nixon for TIME magazine have been among his many commissions. Museum and public collections include the Society of Illustrators, New York; U.S. Air Force, Colorado Springs, Co.; Hartford] Museum, Hartford, Ct. and Sanford Low Memorial Collection of American Illustration, New Britain, Ct.