Rising star

What made you become a painter?

I was 13. I remember being really nervous about telling my mother; she used to sling my macaroni/lentil masterpieces from nursery school in the bin as they were “an ugly ‘lentilly’ mess”. However, she bought me an easel and sent me off to The Slade School of Fine Art in London to do life-drawing classes.

Not really, as it’s so competitive. When I went to my interview at Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design in London, one of the other candidates sent me to the wrong floor – on purpose! Luckily, I got to the right place in time and I got in. I’m glad to say I never saw that other candidate again.

I was really lucky as I was spotted at my degree show and invited to exhibit at the Royal Festival Hall by the Contemporary Art Society. So I didn’t sell one painting – I sold nine.

A great start…

It was fantastic – I paid off my student debts. But I went back to the drawing board after that as I had no paintings or money left.

I’m always scouting public areas for ideas and if I see something I like, I’ll go back at night with a camera and shoot loads of photos. It’s inspiring but it can get you into trouble. I had a nasty incident in King’s Cross, London, when a drug dealer accused me of taking his photo. He thought I was an undercover policewoman. He wasn’t too convinced when I said I was just an artist.

Classic painters such as Turner, Pissaro and Caravaggio and the fi lm Bladerunner; even more bizarrely, the detective series The Equalizer.See Sophie Ahmad’s work London Heights at Rainbird Fine Art, 114 Clerkenwell Road, London, EC1M 5SA, 6 November-1 December 2008, +44 (0)20 7608 3333; www.rainbirdfi neart.com

SOPHIE’S GUIDE TO INVESTING IN ART

• Art fairs offer so much choice, making them great places to fi nd a piece of art as an investment. (See the list below.)
  
• Learn as much as you can about the artist from the gallery representative: i.e. how many exhibitions have they taken part in? Have they held many private or corporate collections? What is their investment potential?
  
• Think about where you want to hang the piece. Will it match the surroundings?
  FORTHCOMING ART FAIRS
  
• Brighton Craft Fair, 23-25 November; www.brightoncraftfair.co.uk Last year’s inaugural fair was so successful that even more contemporary, innovative designers are exhibiting this time round, with prices mostly from £20 to £1,500. (Brighton is about an hour from London.)
  
• Edinburgh Art Fair, 23-25 November; www.artedinburgh.com This is the largest gallery-led art fair in the UK outside London, where works on show are priced from £25 to £30,000. So whether you are a serious collector or a fi rst-time art buyer there’s something for all budgets.
  
• London Art Fair, 16-20 January 2008; www.londonartfair.co.uk Now in its 20th year, this event is a great place to spot emerging talent as it exhibits work from about 100 galleries.