Jessie Rayat was born in Uganda; her family fled to India in 1972 during Idi Amin’s reign as dictator, and in 1976 came to England with her mother. She grew up in London, showing an early interest in painting and drawings. She returned to study as a mature student and completed BA Honours in Fine and then went on to do MA Fine Art at the University of Hertfordshire, where she also did her Post Graduate certificate of Education in Art and Design.
Jessie is a figurative Painter and while she was at the University of Hertfordshire she experimented with mixed media and camera-less photography. Much of this conceptual work informs her practice. As a British Asian Artist, she comes from a rich cultural background and her art has become a quest for self-discovery. She explores themes around the human condition, and much like an alchemist, fuses the two opposite aesthetics (East and West), creating themes in her work that are multifaceted and timeless.
