During the Second World War, John Kingsley Cook (1911-94) served in the merchant navy as a wireless officer. He joined in 1940, and went on his first sea voyage, to the United States, in December 1940. His ship was sunk off the coast of Algeria in 1941, the survivors being taken captive and held there until liberated after the Allied landing in North Africa in 1942. Life in detention was hard: the men were afflicted by lice, boils, dysentery and boredom. Cook and his crewmates learnt to kill time by observing the life of the locals, playing games, making model boats, plotting escapes and keeping unusual 'pets', such as chameleons. Cook grew particularly fond of his, first called 'Joseph' and subsequently 'Josephine' after he witnessed her laying eggs. Josephine was subsequently mauled by a cat, to Cook's great sadness.
Cook modified the composition of this drawing, by gluing a piece of paper on the lower right corner, to conceal the original sketch. Throughout the war, Cook used whichever support was available for his drawing: on the 'Empire Guillemot' he used the back of obsolote navigational charts.Art materials were difficult to procure in the Algerian camp and Cook mostly used a thick, handmade packing paper, which absorbed inks and paints. He may also have favoured it because it suitably evoked the dry, ruggedness of his desert surroundings.

Cook resumed service after a few months recuperating at home, and was discharged in August 1945, when he joined the staff at the Edinburgh College of Art. There, he taught engraving and graphic design and lectured on the History of Art, before being appointed Head of Design in 1960. He retired in 1971.

Throughout the war, Cook drew life at sea and in captivity. He also created a number of retrospective drawings in the 1980s, when he was working on his (as yet unpublished) memoirs. 262 drawings and 2 paintings of his wartime experiences were presented by his family to the National Maritime Museum in 2012.