Rejection Painting

Originally from Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, Zak moved to New York City in the summer of 2018 with dreams to live freely & embrace everything he was passionate about. With a degree in engineering he cultivated a lucrative career but after the unexpected tragic death of his mother, he decided after 20 years working in an industry that bored him and living in a region of the world that oppressed his hidden identity, he realized it was time for a change. With some finesse and a loophole or two Zak acquired a short term business Visa, and once here immediately claimed asylum. Zak loves the USA knowing we will protect and defend his right to be and express who he is. As good as he was at science and math, Zak always daydreamed in colors and visual aesthetic. His personal hobbies and interests mostly leaned towards fashion and interior design. After being in NYC for a few months he took a couple of retail sales positions to occupy his time, connect more with the general public and improve his English. After COVID hit and everything shut down, Zak picked up some water colors, a pad of paper and a brush and started painting things he found beautiful. He had all the basic colors of the rainbow and started playing. The work on this website is the product of Zak's creative passion. As a concept artist, all of ZAK's artwork is made by using only the 6 colors of the LGBTQ+ flag. Each piece embodies and represents the flag itself, as well as making a personal statement about his journey to North America to escape the Middle East, where he could be free to express himself as he does with his art. He has suffered a long journey, giving up a career as a mechanical engineer, and gone through great pain to finally live without fear and oppression because of his sexuality, and can finally do so being in NYC.