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Jim Norton was born with a paintbrush in his hand and a pigeon perched on his shoulder. His teenage years were spent taking art classes and playing high school football and basketball. He spent most of his life in the western states but claims Wyoming as home. 

His education in the field of art began when he was a youngster watching his grandfather, Earl Fausett, paint in his basement studio. Jim continued his art education at Western Wyoming College and Brigham Young University. He has furthered his informal education by traveling to museums in Russia, Canada, and the United States, learning from the works of the masters themselves. He also studied under Conrad Schwiering.

Jim  was invited to become a member of the Cowboy Artists of America in 1989. At the 2010 CAA show Jim received the Stetson CAA Award for his body of work and a Gold Medal for Oil Painting for The Lifetime. 

He and his wife raised their four children in Santaquin, Utah and his studio has a view of mountains 11,000 feet high. He also owns seventeen acres in Wyoming where he paints wildlife and landscape. He is convinced that painting from life is what lends authenticity and vitality to his paintings. He paints 10 to 12 paintings a year, often working on several at a time.