Ergin İnan was born in 1943 in Malatya, Turkey. He graduated from the Istanbul State School of Applied and Fine Arts, (now Marmara University), in 1968, studying under Karl Schlaminger and Helmut Hungerberg. His first solo exhibition was held in the same year at the Turco-German Cultural Centre in Istanbul.

Under the supervision of Emilio Vedova, Ergin İnan studied at the Summer Academy of Salzburg in 1969. He won a German exchange fellowship to study painting and printmaking at the Munich Academy of Fine Arts from 1971 to 1973. Upon winning a grant from DAAD's Berlin Artists-in-Residence Programme in 1983, Ergin İnan moved to Berlin, where he lived for three more years. In 1985, Ergin İnan was appointed professor at Marmara University's Faculty of Fine Arts.

Ergin İnan has held numerous solo shows, mainly in Turkey and Germany, and has contributed to group exhibitions all over the world. His work can be found in the permanent collections of the Dahlem Museum in Berlin, the British Museum, and the State Museums of Fine Arts Collection in Ankara and Istanbul. Ergin İnan is the recipient of numerous national and international awards. He currently divides his time between Istanbul and Berlin.