about me

Zeina Skaff Kahhale

Color and form are the two most essential elements in my work. 

The day I spent three hours painting an apple and finding lines in red, purple, grey, ochre, green, sienna, orange, yellow, blue, white, and violet—I knew I was hooked for life.  

Perhaps the only other moment I have felt such serenity was when I pinched my first pot of clay. The sensorial satisfaction was too strong to let pass. I now see pottery as an opportunity to connect with my playful side – after all, pottery is playing with “mud” – and to be creative at the same time. It is also a profound way to connect with my fellow potters; sitting in a circle crafting a bowl or a platter ties me to thousands of years of human tradition, and to many inspiring artists in the room. To me, it is as primitive as it is rewarding.

Discovering the new medium of encaustics has brought so much joy into my life lately. The luscious quality of the hot wax mixed with myriad of colors, while imprinting different shapes and patterns, provided me with an innovative technique to reach new horizons.

Whether it's the abstract playground of my canvas, the real texture of my clay, or the vivacious surface of my encaustics panel, one principle has held true: the more the art transports me to new, uncharted places, the more readily I go with it. I hope my art compels you, the viewer, to do so as well.

Henri Matisse once said: "Purer colors... have in themselves, independently of the objects they serve to express, a significant action on the feelings of those who look at them."

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Zeina has a BA degree, with an Interior Design major & Graphic Design minor.

Early in her career, she helped establish a new graphic design company, Areen Graphics. Areen is most famous for launching the Middle East Airlines (MEA) in-flight magazine, Cedar Wings. She designed both English and Arabic Logos.

She then worked in Switzerland at Logitech headquarters, as the graphics coordinator for all products publications in the marketing department. She also worked as the graphics coordinator in Montreal, QC at McCabe Advertising Agency for medical products.

Zeina then decided to shift her focus and pursue different artistic challenges, including painting, pottery, stained glass, encaustics, mural art, and Chinese calligraphy. She participates in workshops with other artists in the Metro Boston area fostering all these creative skills.

Zeina's expertise in Interior Design has helped her with the fitting of the professional offices for Altiostar Networks, Inc. Headquarters. She enjoys bringing vibrancy and character to different spaces, infusing the environment with colors.

Zeina is a member of the Newton Art Association and participates in the Newton Open Studios, along with many fundraisers for local charities.

Zeina is a proud member of the deCordova Art Loan Program - CALP, where some of her paintings hang in executive offices across the city of Boston, MA 

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Here is the list of the locations where Zeina has displayed her work:

• The New Art Center, Newton, MA

• The Scandinavian Life Center, Newton, MA

• The Arsenal Center for the Arts, Watertown, MA

• Newton City Hall, Newton, MA

• Café L’Aroma

  • Newbury Street, Boston, MA

  • Spencer Street, West Newton, MA

• Gregorian Rugs, Newton, MA

• New TV, Newton, MA

• Newton Free Library, Newton, MA

• Morse Institute Library, Natick, MA

• MotherBrook Arts Center, Dedham, MA

• Boston Psychoanalytic Society & Institute, Newton, MA

Zeina resides in the Greater Boston Area.  She works at Indigo Fire in Watertown, and Harvard Ceramics in Allston.

She can be reached at zeina@zeinask.com