Sam Chatto, the 29-year-old grandson of Princess Margaret and 30th in line to the British throne, has announced his engagement to his long-time girlfriend, Eleanor Ekserdjian.
Chatto, a ceramicist, proposed to Ekserdjian, a painter and filmmaker, with a porcelain ring he crafted himself. He shared the news on Instagram, stating, "I'm really delighted to say that Ellie and I are engaged. And we couldn't be happier."
Eleanor Ekserdjian, also 29, comes from a family with significant ties to the art world. Her father, Professor David Ekserdjian, is an Emeritus Professor of History of Art and Film History at the University of Leicester and has held roles at Christie's, Apollo magazine, and lectured at the Courtauld Institute of Art and the University of Oxford. He has also served as a trustee for Art UK and the Sir John Soane's Museum. Eleanor's mother, Susan Moore, is a respected art critic and art market correspondent for the Financial Times, and is currently writing a book about the artist Anne Estelle Rice.
Ekserdjian's brother, Alexander Ekserdjian, is an Assistant Professor of Classics and History of Art at Yale University, specializing in ancient Mediterranean art. The family also has Armenian heritage, with Eleanor's grandfather, Colonel Nubar Martin Ekserdjian, having been awarded the Legion of Merit by President Franklin D. Roosevelt for his World War II service.
Both Sam Chatto and Eleanor Ekserdjian are artists. Chatto, after a brief stint in the commercial art market, turned to pottery and has completed apprenticeships in Japan and Norway. His work has been exhibited in Oslo and London. Ekserdjian studied Fine Art at the University of Edinburgh and the Royal Drawing School. Her artistic practice involves projecting moving images onto canvas and drawing over them. Her debut film, "Imagined Landscapes," exploring her Armenian heritage, was shown at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London. She has also had solo exhibitions of her abstract landscape paintings.
The couple met at the University of Edinburgh, where Chatto studied History of Art, and have been pictured together since 2022. They share an artistic studio in West Sussex. Ekserdjian's work has been described as portraying a "diasporic perspective" and has been exhibited alongside Chatto's.
Sam Chatto is the son of Lady Sarah Chatto and Daniel Chatto. His maternal grandfather was the photographer Lord Snowdon. The couple are planning to wed next spring, and the King has been informed of the engagement and is reportedly very happy for them.