Papa Doc Lindley was born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1954. His family moved to South Carolina when he was young and as he progressed through school it became evident that he possessed artistic abilities. Upon graduating from high school in Raleigh, North Carolina, he attended East Carolina University as a business major. After years of having a sales career, he decided to pursue his talents in art full time. Dock began by taking a correspondence class and received a diploma for studies in Master Art. He also obtained lessons from various local artists including Ester Donally of Wilmington. In his spare time he started painting -using mostly oil. For many years his hobbies have been diving and fishing. He also enjoyed taking underwater photographs on his frequent diving excursions. Hence, his appreciation of aquatic life began and proved to be very helpful in his future art endeavor.