Zarah Hussain: Geometry & Color
Inspired by geometric designs found in Muslim culture, UK artist Zarah Hussain creates meticulous, mathematical works of art that are infused with color and light. In this exclusive interview, Zarah shares her journey and creative process with us.
Tell me about your background and where your creative journey began.
I come from a small town in the North of England. When I was young, I had two big ambitions - to get out of my town and move to London to become an Artist. I am really pleased that I have achieved both, however, the journey has not been smooth to get there!
At school, from a very young age, my favourite lesson was art and I was very fortunate to have an open-minded and inspirational art teacher in high school. I decided to take art for GCSE and A-level and I remember during the course we studied famous artists like Monet, Rembrandt and Georgia O Kieffe.
I remember questioning my art teacher and asking him - where is the art from India, from China, Pakistan, the Middle East. Why do we only study artists from the western world?
To his credit, he tried to find artists for me from other parts of the world (this was before the internet - so much harder than it is now). He bought me books on the art from the Islamic and contemporary Artists from Pakistan. I remember leafing through these books and becoming transfixed by the tiled geometric designs found across the Muslim world. I particularly liked the art and architecture from Morocco and I started to try and draw these mathematical designs and incorporate them into my work.
Where do you find inspiration for your work?
I find inspiration in the art and architecture of the Islamic world. I love geometry and mathematical design. I also love many contemporary artists and I try to get out and see as many exhibitions as I can. Lastly, I find there is a lot of colour inspiration in the natural world.
How do you utilize color, shape and pattern in your paintings?
I am obsessed with colour. I make many many colour charts and drawings before I start painting.
For me the structure and the geometry of the work is not that difficult to put together - but getting the colours right is extremely difficult.
I can spend hours getting that right. Often, I will go back again and again until the colours are right.
It is the same in the digital work- getting the colour combinations to work is a real challenge.
How has your work shifted and evolved over time?
I think my work is shifting and evolving all the time, I am a little impatient and I can't do the same work over and over again.
Over time, I am more confident to try new things and I think over time you develop an intuitive sense of what you think will work.
What does a typical day in the studio look like for you, and how has your art practice grown or changed?
Normally I plan my week quite tightly, I like having goals and targets to work towards. However, we are in lockdown again in the UK and I have two small children to look after.
I am doing probably a quarter of the work I normally do. At the moment, my time is taken up with the 7,8 and 9 times table, checking spellings and reading the Secret Garden (again!)
In normal (non-covid) times, my studio is a sanctuary, an oasis of peace and calm. I like being alone and thinking about what I want to do. At the moment getting any space to myself is tricky.
I keep the studio quite clean and if I am having a slow or difficult day or if I feel blocked - then I paint colour charts or tidy up!
Which experiences have impacted your work as an artist?
Realistically, I think that everything that happens to you impacts on your artwork. My work is an extension of who I am - so all my life experiences feed into how my work evolves and develops.
How has Instagram impacted your art career?
During the first lockdown, I joined in with the Artist Support Pledge @artistsupportpledge. I got a really fantastic response and I got many new followers - it opened up my work to a whole new group of people.
Through the pledge I got some really cool pieces of art from artists I admire and I made some new friendships. Overall, for me it was a brilliant experience.
I have sold quite a lot of work through instagram and I think it is the future. For me, it gives me complete control of what I want to be on show and I really prefer selling direct to collectors.
It is really accessible to those that may find the art world elitist, opaque and difficult.
What are your future goals and aspirations?
Right now, I just want to get out of lockdown with my sanity intact!
There will be long-term impacts of Covid on the art world. Right now, we just don't know for sure whether things will go back to the way they were, or things will change completely.
At the moment I am working on a new solo show made up of 3D geometric pieces, I am hoping it will open in Spring 2021 at Gallery Oldham in Greater Manchester, however, we may have to change the date to September.
Follow Zarah on Instagram: @zarahkhussain
Website: www.zarahhussain.co.uk