John Ta ne Christeller grew up in Upper Hutt. His mother, Flora, was a pioneer potter and his father, Gerald, sang professionally, but while John made art for pleasure, science became his career. He studied plants and insects at DSIR, and his research interests took him to Japan, the US, UK and France for extended periods. He went on to learn te reo at Te Wa nanga o Aotearoa and Patua Te Taniwha. John lives in Palmerston North with his wife, Donna.