Today we’d like to introduce you to Kajal Zaveri
Hi Kajal, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I am a full-time artist based for many years in San Francisco and now very recently working out of New York City. I was not always a full-time artist, and throughout my early life, I pursued the path of academics, pursuing art as a hobby. Growing up in India, I was always surrounded by vibrancy, colors, traditions, and celebrations. I did not get formal art school training, but enrolling in a local hobby art class and inspiration all around me was enough to ignite my love for painting. After I moved to California, I wanted to visually translate the magnificence and beauty of California and many amazing encounters with nature, that filled me with a great sense of joy and excitement and the need to visually journal that on canvas, all that I saw and sensed around me. I decided to quit my steady corporate job and focused my time, effort, and energy on pursuing art as a full-time career. I am so thankful for that decision since I have enjoyed every day of my life being an artist and experiencing joy, calmness, anchoring, purpose, and equilibrium in my life. I have now recently moved to New York city, and am inspired all over again with its energy, dynamism, diversity and resilience,. I love to create art that is an amalgamation of all my experiences and points of inspiration so far.
I am so blessed to have my work well received and sold on Williams Sonoma home for many years, curated collections on One Kings Lane, featured on Times Square Billboards and featured in magazines like Elle Décor, Popsugar.com and various artist blogs and interviews. I have been able to exhibit and sell at major Art Fairs like Hamptons Art Fair, Volta Art Fair in NYC, CONTEXT Art in Miami, Art Market San Francisco and Spectrum, Miami and Red Dot, Miami and privileged and humbled to have many private collectors from all over the world, buy my art and showcase that in their beautiful homes.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
My artistic journey has been of continuous evolution and learnings, reflecting changes in my environment and personal growth.
However, this journey as a creative and an artist has not been very smooth and has involved struggles, challenges and processes that are unique to me. Years of pursuit, time, effort, and constant exploration have been invested to find my own artistic voice and identity. From generating ideas to translating them into tangible works, I go through periods of exploration, experimentation, and uncertainty. The iterative nature and effort needed in the endeavor of the creative process is sometimes undervalued and under-appreciated by some in the non-creative fields. Also, to get to this point where I can make a living as a full time artist, has also taken a lot of time and a great support system and constant reminders to stay motivated and keep going. It has been a lot of work to get visibility and opportunities. But in the end, for me its all been worth it and I cannot think of anything else I would rather do.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a New York based artist, and until recently a San Francisco based artist, specializing in semi abstract oil and acrylic paintings, mainly of landscapes and urbanscapes. My painting style is a mix of abstract and semi abstract portrayals of nature and urban nature, in rich, lush colors. My work is free flowing, and expressive and falls in the realm of Abstract Realism. Since the viewer doesn’t know of my particular point of inspiration, it is my hope that when they view my work, it ignites their own fond memories of special places and times and entice nostalgia and dreaminess and a sense of commonness and shared experiences.My comes from a happy and positive place and is inspired the vibrancy and diversity of New York, the beauty and bounty of my long time spent in California, and the rich colors and spirit of my birth home, India. The colors and styling of my pieces are inspired by my sense of gratitude, joy, amazement, and wonderment that I feel every day and that is what I aspire to share with the viewer.
I am not a formally trained artist and neither have I always been a full-time artist. In my early life, art was a part-time hobby which has now become my passion and a full-time career choice. Throughout my early life, I pursued the path of academics and after moving to California from India, I pursued my MBA and worked in the corporate sector for some years.
Living in California, I was able to discover the magnificence and bounty of that beautiful state. In my various, regular explorations. I felt a great sense of joy and excitement, being outside in nature, and I looked forward to visually journaling on canvas, all that I saw and sensed around me. After my son was born, I quit my corporate day job and focused all my energies on pursuing art as a full-time career. Since then I have not looked back and am now a full time artist, drawing inspiration from nature, and the energy and dynamism of my new hometown, New York city.
At the start of the pandemic, I volunteered to teach art and painting to more than a hundred cool, special need kids, virtually, for more than a year. During that time, I also did various guest artist sessions for various NGOs. These weekly and frequent interactions reiterated for me, the immense strength and power of art and how joyful and therapeutic it can be and how satisfying it is when shared with everyone. In the process, I also learnt a lot about myself, and this has boosted my confidence both as an artist and a collaborator. This entire experience has strengthened my vision to keep creating my art with even more gratitude, and joy. I continue to volunteer and work with various NGOS to conduct art workshops and classes, and also serve as a Board Member for an NGO that works to make the world a more inclusive place for all persons with all abilities.
I also donate my art for various auctions for various different social causes and this opportunity to give back through my art as a teacher, mentor, and artist has been the most rewarding and satisfying part of my career path.
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
Finding a mentor or building a network as an artist requires a mix of initiative, consistency, and openness. Social media platforms, like Instagram or LinkedIn, have worked for me for showcasing my work and engaging directly with artists, galleries, and potential mentors. I also think it helps to follow and interact with those who inspire you—leaving thoughtful comments, asking questions, and building genuine relationships. I try and attend local or virtual art fairs, exhibitions, and workshops where I can meet people in the art community face-to-face.
Another piece of advice that I can share is to offer your time or skills for volunteer projects, like teaching art or collaborating with NGOs and museums, as it has personally helped me connect with artists and curators while contributing to the community. Mentorship and networking are about nurturing meaningful relationships over time rather than seeking quick outcomes. Stay authentic, curious, and open to learning.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.kajalzaveri.art
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artist.kajalzaveri/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KajalZaveriArt
Image Credits
Sandip Parekh
