When he left school at 15, even though he didn’t have any formal training, he got a job in a commercial studio in Fleet Street that specialised in posters for films. He recalls of that time: “I was sacked after three years for having long hair and looking like a Rolling Stone clone.” By now it was 1963 and pop art and the rock and roll music scene were flourishing in London. 

He went on to spend the next few years working as a freelance artist using an airbrush as his main technique. He became a renowned expert on hand colouring or enhancing photographs using an airbrush (no such thing as computer graphics then), as well as illustration. He rented a studio in the basement of the Covent Garden Opera House along with fellow artist George Underwood who was a childhood friend of David Bowie. He took on an artist’s agent and his career flourished working on album covers, advertising campaigns and for major book and magazine publishers. In 1971 Underwood was asked by the 24 year old Bowie to do the artwork for his forthcoming album Hunky Dory. 

As Pastor recalls: “It wasn’t George’s style. He was an illustrator and David asked him to do the Hunky Dory cover, but he didn’t really use an airbrush or do that sort of work so he passed it on to me.” Bowie was so pleased with the results that in 1972 he commissioned Terry to design and colour the Ziggy Stardust cover using the same techniques as for Hunky Dory. He continued to get commissions from a range of industries working for advertising agencies, musicians and publishers. 

In later years he has worked mainly using digital media, although some of his work also incorporates traditional airbrush technique. He laments the demise of the 12-inch vinyl cover. As he says “a CD was half the size and now downloads hardly get any covers at all, it’s a shame. I think the whole thing with a record is that you can study (the cover) while you listened to it.”

You can buy his more recent prints at his own website here.