 Ray Ciarrocchi, the son of Italian immigrants from Tuscany and Le Marche, was born Ramon William Ciarrocchi in Chicago, IL on August 23, 1933.As a child he enjoyed drawing and during high school attended classes at the Art Institute of Chicago where he was influenced by the French Impressionists works that form a significant part of the museum's collection.After high school he enrolled and studied for two years at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts with the idea that he might eventually work as an illustrator.