Arnold van Praag was born in London, England in 1926 and trained at the Slade School of Fine Art (1953-57), winning a scholarship. His peers included Michael Andrews, Victor Willing, Euan Uglow and Craigie Aitchison. His first solo exhibition comprising drawings was held at the ICA in 1963 and his second, held at Roland, Browse and Delbanco Gallery in Cork Street, London, in 1965, sold out before it opened. Two years later he participated in the Whitechapel Art Gallery's major exhibition The Face of Man. Van Praag pursued a distinguished teaching career, becoming a Lecturer in Painting, then Head of Painting at Hertfordshire College of Art and Design, then Visiting Tutor in painting at Camberwell School of Art (1975-91), when he retired to work full time in his Cambridge studio. His work addresses aspects of everyday life executed in a vivid, painterly style with links to German Expressionism. In 2016, a selection of Arnold van Praag’s work was exhibited at the Redfern in 'Arnold van Praag at 90'. Arnold van Praag died in Cambridge, England in 2020. His estate is represented by the Redfern Gallery.