Edward M. Plunkett was born in 1922 in Highland Park, Michigan. Before coming to New York in 1949 for graduate studies at The Institute of Fine Arts and then at the Sorbonne in Paris, Plunkett attended the University of Chicago and the School of the Chicago Art Institute. Plunkett went on to teach at The Chicago Art Institute. Plunkett's style is unique in contemporary art. It is a style that has developed as a result of his interest in the concept of surrealism, and in fantastic art. His paintings have been exhibited at The Whitney Museum in New York, in museums in Holland, Switzerland and The Museum of Modern Art in Paris. His work is found in numerous collections including The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.