Rizvan Rahman (born 1970) is a Pakistani-born British painter. Known for his impasto oil portrait and figure paintings, Rahman launched his first solo show in

Mayfair, London Mayfair is an affluent area in the West End of London towards the eastern edge of Hyde Park, in the City of Westminster, between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane. It is one of the most expensive districts in the world ...

, in February 2016, to favorable accolade and press, including

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

and

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

. Rahman's work has been compared to Lucian Freud.

Early life and family

Rizvan Rahman was born in the city of

Karachi, Pakistan Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...

by the

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea ( ar, اَلْبَحرْ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Bahr al-ˁArabī) is a region of the northern Indian Ocean bounded on the north by Pakistan, Iran and the Gulf of Oman, on the west by the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel ...

. His father's profession was a golfer who travelled with the family across the world. Rizvan Rahman practiced to be a professional golfer, but made the decision to concentrate fully on

Fine Art In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwork ...

. Rahman achieved a BA Honours degree in Fine Art from De Montfort University near to his home town of

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

. He is married to a primary school teacher and they have three young children.

Early career

After leaving school, he developed a painting style influenced by the Old Masters, with a particular interest in the work of

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consid ...

, Velazquez,

Van Dyke Van Dyke, VanDyke or Vandyke is an Americanized or anglicized form of the Dutch-language toponymic surname ''Van Dijk'', ''Van Dijke'', ''Van Dijck'', or '' Van Dyck''. Meaning living near the dike. Van Dyke, VanDyke or Vandyke may refer to: As a ...

and

Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque traditio ...

. He graduated from De Montfort University with a degree in fine art and later qualified as an art and design teacher. at the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It offe ...

Rahman began dealing in art in 2006, after several years of collecting art as a hobby. He maintains that he was ill-advised over several paintings he sold between 2006 and 2008, which were later identified as forgeries. He was issued an 18-month sentence for dealing forgeries, after the case came before

Leicester Crown Court The Leicestershire Law Courts is a Crown Court venue, which deals with criminal cases, as well as a County Court venue, which deals with civil cases, in Wellington Street, Leicester, England. History Until the early 1980s, criminal court hea ...

. In October 2011, Rahman served a 5-month prison sentence and since his release in 2012, Rahman has devoted his energies to create a “strong and impressive body of fleshy figurative painting.”

2016

Rahman's first solo exhibition, “Point of Departure”, consisted of 22 large scale figurative Oil paintings, received much attention and press at the time of opening in Mayfair, London. Rahman was quoted as saying that the exhibition represented 4 years worth of work which must stand on its own merits. "Perhaps the less I explain, the better. Truth is often knowledge by acquaintance."

Mature Style

Compared to the works of Lucian Freud His paintings of female nudes are also compared to the works of Jenny Saville and Simon Birch, Rahman himself states he takes inspiration from Freud, Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Velasquez and Rubens.

Solo exhibitions

2016: “Point of Departure”, Mayfair, London

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rahman, Rizvan 1970 births Living people Artists from Karachi Pakistani emigrants to the United Kingdom Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom 20th-century British painters British male painters Pakistani painters 21st-century British painters British illustrators Modern painters British contemporary artists 20th-century British male artists 21st-century British male artists