Hafen was born in Switzerland. He came to Salt Lake City with his parents in 1862. That same year, he took instruction in drawing from George Ottinger and Dan Weggeland, two early Utah artists. In 1881, a group of young artists, including Hafen, founded the Utah Art Association, later the Utah Art Institute. Its purpose was to produce exhibitions and provide art instruction. In 1890, Hafen helped convince L.D.S. church authorities to sponsor the “French Art Mission,“ for study at the Académie Julian in Paris. Several young Utah artists, including Hafen, J. B. Fairbanks, Lorus Pratt, Edwin Evans. Their studies were subsidized by the L.D.S. Church so that the young artists could improve their skills in order to paint murals and paintings for L.D.S. temples on their return to Utah. Today, John Hafen is considered among the most important early Utah artists.

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