We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Zahra Sayeed a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Zahra, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I was born an artist. Ever since I was a child I was constantly creating. People around me including my classmates and school staff were always asking me to draw something for them. They loved to collect my art pieces or asked me if I wanted to give away any of my work. Their demands were very overwhelming to me. Sometimes in our art classes, our art teacher would ask me to come in front of the class and teach art to the whole class; even when I was still in elementary or middle school.

Over time, I realized that my art had a higher value than what I initially thought. I realized there was a great opportunity for me to earn, while also making others happy. Later in high school, I started getting paid to teach drawing and calligraphy to the teachers and students. I was commissioned to do murals for the school walls and so on. Gradually, the projects I was being asked for were getting bigger, and I was establishing myself as a professional in my field. Soon, I started receiving orders even from outside of the school.

Therefore I can say that ever since I was in middle school, art became more than a hobby to me. People’s demand and interest in my work naturally placed me on this path. The driving factor that helped me to successfully walk through it was the understanding of the value of my abilities, along with my passion, love, and hard work. Over time I realized I have unlimited opportunities using what God gifted me inside.

Zahra, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Besides the fact that as a self-taught artist, I have been selling my paintings since childhood, I officially started my creative career in Dubai in 2017, with my sisters as a team. We, (Zahra, Homaira, and Nilofar), formed our art team with a lot of enthusiasm, energy, and creativity, and named it “HZN”, which is derived from the first letter of our names. We started as freelanced artists.

Later, we established an art shop in Kabul-Afghanistan in 2019. During this time my two younger sisters, Arya and Mina, who are also amazing artists, joined us. Therefore, our team became stronger and our business started expanding rapidly. So, we not only provided painting services but also had art classes where we taught painting and calligraphy. Our art department also included art stationery, event management, graphic design, etc. In 2020, we established a unique and artistic coffee shop called “HZN Cafe” next to our art department. This combination of art and coffee created something different that drew a lot of attention to our work.

When the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan, they banned women, including us, from work and took away our freedom. We were forced to leave our country and settle in other countries. Now, we continue our creative career and also want to revive what we have lost, here in the US, even better than before, with more passion and energy.

Currently, anyone can purchase our original and printed paintings through our social media pages linked here. We ship them anywhere worldwide. We also accept customized orders (commissions) and teach art (drawing and calligraphy) to students from all around the world through our one-on-one or group online classes. Recently, we announced our newly released HZN T-shirts, clothes, and accessories on our website. We also sell our art as NFTs on the crypto market. We are always full of surprises and new things!

Soon we are going to publish books, with the first one being an interesting fiction book, written by our team member, Arya Sayeed, during the most difficult and bitter period of her life in Afghanistan under the rule of the Taliban. We can’t wait for it! We will have more coming soon that we are thrilled, and we want you all to stay tuned, follow us, and support us!

Apart from what you may have noticed so far, some things that always make us stand out are our unified team of five artists/ sisters, our creativity and quality of work, our hard work and passion, and lastly, our story. We have an interesting story of how we took the risk and started our career in a country like Afghanistan, what we have gone through, and how we became what we are now.

Another thing that we strive for is good quality at reasonable prices. Because the satisfaction and happiness of our costumers is a cornerstone for our business. We make a broad range of interesting and diverse art styles. The selection of the artistic services we provide allows us to have an option for every type of need and unique taste.

According to our records, we have successfully achieved our goal of making our work different and always staying innovative. For example, our exhibitions and events have always been in our unique way that drove a lot of attention. Another huge aspect of our work has always been to support women. We place this goal in almost all our activities. Despite the damage that the Taliban inflicted on our activities, we will continue what we were doing; even if it is slower than before.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I think being free and unrestrained is one of the best things about being an artist. As an artist, you can create, build, and express. With art, you will never feel alone. It is a special ability for an artist to enjoy the world by seeing it differently with all the unique details and capturing the fascinations differently.

Art is an inner capital; it doesn’t matter if you are sitting in nature or being in prison, if you are poor or rich, educated or not. Being an artist or creative is like having a source of treasure inside you that never ends. The more you use it, the greater it becomes. If you give it a chance to grow, it will give you a chance to rise and shine.

Additionally, artists can relate to everyone in a way because they can express themselves and connect with others on a deep emotional level. Through art, you can communicate your thoughts, feelings, and experiences in your own unique way. It is fascinating when your artwork resonates with someone else and sparks a meaningful conversation or evokes strong emotions. It creates a bridge between hearts and minds through creativity with no boundaries.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

In my opinion, non-creative people usually find it hard to understand our deep and multi-dimensional imagination, and how we express feelings and thoughts into an understandable expression to others. Additionally, artists often find inspiration in the smallest things, and it can be hard for others to grasp that. It’s like they have a different lens through which they see the world.

Also, they might find it hard to understand how creatives have an emotional connection with their work. For artists, their creations are often an extension of themselves, and they pour their heart and soul into their art. It is not just about the final product, but the journey and personal experience that comes with it matters. Sometimes it is beautiful and other times a vulnerable process. It often happens that a non-creative expects a creative to finish an art project or work on it by a certain time, no matter under what circumstance. Whereas the artist can work successfully only when she/ he feels like doing it. Because art does not contain a solid formulation to follow.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://hzn-t-shirt.creator-spring.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hzn.arts/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063442820552&mibextid=PlNXYD
• Other: NFTs on OpenSea: https://opensea.io/HZN-Art?fbclid=PAAaYvKKZtVJrs-E2k0_9nw9UKTkDgYLrC3NwfEsQP8XWqjdmpW91EjDZrFfo_aem_AcKnRwoB77wF_qNqp4JTeIM-JjxwUWcPSVHNo27uumLL3mbEYqI6XVPTcvEaH9bsaI0