Painting with ochre and other earthy colors, Nazir Ismail combined expressionism and surrealism to describe his emotions, giving his work a psychological depth. Depicting the cultural, social, and political atmosphere around him, much of his work deals with the feelings of defeat, losses, confusion and bitterness.

Typical of his work, “Untitled” has clusters of shapes in his compositions, drawing the viewer to examine the surface as a whole and absorb the plethora of lines and textures.