Nadeem Chughtai was born in Epsom, England, in 1973, to an English mother and a Pakistani father and grew up in Worcester Park. Encouraged in his artistic endeavors by his parents and teachers from a young age, Chughtai attended the Epsom School of Art and Design and took an illustration course at Northbrook College in Worthing. With aspirations of becoming a filmmaker, he next tackled photography and in 1997, took a position in the art department on the film “The Avengers.” This began a five-year-long period of working in set design for film, and Chughtai’s film experience shows in his cinematic paintings and dramatic use of light. Chughtai eventually left the film industry and acquired a studio to work on his own paintings.

A keen observer of everyday life, Chughtai attempts to find the commonalities that unite us all in order to touch people through his artwork. Part of this accessibility is also leaving a modicum of mystery in his compositions so that they are open to individual interpretation; the subjects’ faces are not shown and their character is translated by posture and body language. Chughtai finds inspiration in old and new masters alike: Edward Hopper for his eerie, ambiguous images; Caravaggio for his ability to capture the moment; Donna McLean for the dark, atmospheric moods she creates. Chughtai’s artwork combines the influence of these artists to create work that is utterly unique and full of high cinematic drama.