Effel was born in Paris and graduated in art, music and philosophy. Despite all efforts and wishes of his father to take over his merchant trade, Effel chose path of a professional artist. Often he drew for French newspaper l'Humanité and he is also author of illustrations of Jean de La Fontaine fables.

Paintings cycle The creation of the world is considered to be his greatest work ( picturized in 1957 by director E. Hofman). Whole cycle has five books Le Ciel et la Terre (Sky and earth), Les Plantes et Animaux (Plants and animals), L'Homme (Man), La Femme (Woman) and Le Roman d'Adam et Eve (Story of Adam and Eve). Among his important works we can place also collection of antifascist caricatures from 1935 and book of cartons When Animals Still Talkedfrom 1953.

Effel's paintings are easily readable, fresh, humoristic and novel, with typical curl sign appended and sometimes with little daisy in the lower right corner that shows author's kind view of the world.

Jean Effel had close relation to Czechoslovakia and was longstanding chairman of Company of French-Czechoslovak friendship. He received the Lenin Peace Prize in 1967. He died in Paris in 1982.