Nikhil comes from a culturally hybrid background, being born in the U.K, his mother from South Africa, father from Kenya and grandparents from India. He was immersed into the world of art from an early age as he grew up alongside his grandfather who himself was a painter. 

 

Nikhil shined at the top of his class during his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at Chelsea College of Arts, University of Arts London, only to complete his Masters in Painting from Wimbledon College of Arts, UAL the year after. 

He has created fabric paintings to express his feelings and thoughts. He loves to use materials in a way that other people haven’t used in an effort to push the boundaries of not only how we view art but also how we view the world. For Nikhil, incorporating silk saris within his paintings hold a far greater significance than mere aesthetics, “it is a link to a shared colonial past between Britain and India. One of the largest exporting goods for Britain during the colonial times from India was their textile. Indian textiles were a huge demand for the British Empire.”

“I have a passion for creation, I love to take materials that other people haven’t used in the same way and create 
something unique out of them. It’s important to me to be able to push the boundaries of what I see as art and painting as far as I possibly can.” - Nikhil Patel