Tunis Ponsen was born in the Netherlands, where he received formal training in the arts before emigrating to the US in 1913 and settling in Michigan.

Ponsen enrolled in art classes and exhibited in the Hackley Art Gallery in Muskegon, Michigan. Moving to Chicago in 1924, studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and lived in Hyde Park.

In spite of his Michigan roots, Ponsen was claimed as a Chicago artist, as much of his art was about the city and its environs.

Ponsen was an instructor of the Blue Island Art Club from 1958 until his death in 1968 and he was honored there in a fine art exhibit in 1996.

His paintings and watercolors won numerous prizes and were exhibited at museums, including the Art Institute of Chicago, Detroit Institute of Art, Flint Institute of Arts, Muskegon Institute of Art, Pennsylvania Academy of Art and the Toledo Art Museum.