Adnan Ali is a painter and interdisciplinary practitioner with a background in art, performance, and academic research. Born in Pakistan, he received his early education at Aitchison College, Lahore. He holds a degree in sociology from Pakistan, a master’s degree in finance from Birkbeck, University of London, and has undertaken postgraduate study in gender, culture and politics at University College London (UCL). In the 1990s, he studied at Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and founded Al-Fatiha UK, one of the first LGBTQ+ Muslim support networks in the UK. He works as part of the Vice-Provost team for Research, Innovation and Global Engagement (RIGE) at UCL, focusing on initiatives connecting people, governance, and institutional strategy. His artwork is held in private collections in the UK, USA, Canada, Brazil, Portugal, India, and Pakistan.