Skokie artist Zeeshan Farooq has practiced the nuanced craft of Islamic calligraphy since he was in the fifth grade.
Raised in Pakistan, Farooq said there was always a strong cultural emphasis on “beautiful handwriting” as a form of artistic craftsmanship, but the ritual was rarely viewed as a viable business path.
Immigrating to the United States in 2001, Farooq followed a path many would consider the immigrant success story: he earned several advanced degrees, established himself in the tech industry and built a stable, corporate career as a product manager.
But despite these accomplishments, he found himself continuously drawn back to his passion for creating customized art, reminiscent of his childhood.
“I always thought that [making art] is just going to stay as my side passion. I will always be a professional, I will always do a corporate job.”
But then Farooq was unexpectedly laid off in 2023 and again the following year, he said.
He took the unanticipated job change as a sign that enough was enough. “I decided to invest in myself,” he added.
“I’ve always been in charge of my destiny, so let me just take a step in this field which has given me some recognition…I’m so, so happy for this chapter in my life.”
After spending the past several years selling his artwork through custom commissions and various e-commerce marketplaces, Farooq celebrated the grand opening of his first-ever brick and mortar storefront, Creation Z Art & Design Studio, on June 11, surrounded by elected officials, community leaders and local artists.
Located at 4913 Oakton Street in Skokie, the contemporary Muslim design studio specializes in hand-crafted, custom artwork, including laser-cut wood geometric designs and Islamic and Arabic calligraphy.
Blending centuries-old artistic traditions with contemporary design patterns, Farooq said Creation Z will act primarily as a gallery space to display his work, which visitors can then purchase or get inspiration from in requesting their own customized pieces.
“My main focus is to present it in a way that you come in, you look at these [pieces], and you’re like, ‘Oh my God, I can get this for my home or can you fit this into my home?’…That’s why I think a gallery was needed, because I have so many ideas and I just didn’t have a way to showcase them.”
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He added that while he specializes in Islamic designs, his art is open to every faith.
“Faith has no boundaries, right, that has been my motto from day one for my creations…My very first Islamic artwork was bought by a Christian family, so this is my way of saying that all this hate is just fabricated and nothing and nobody tells or teaches hating one another.”
Farooq said the recent community art mural he led for the Skokie Public Library, “Hate has no home here,” embodied this exact principle.
The commissioned work invited Skokie residents of all ages to paint and arrange individual scraps of wood on a collaborative mosaic to showcase their individuality and the diversity emblematic of the village.
“It was a testament of that,” Farooq said, “where people from different faiths, different backgrounds, different ethnic cultures came together and created this beautiful mural.”
His work has also been featured at the Chicago History Museum, in the 2019 exhibit, “American Medina: Stories of Muslim Chicago,” highlighting the rich history of Muslim communities within the city.
After raising his family here and living in the village for the better part of three decades, Farooq said there’s no other area where he’d want to open his own business.
“[Skokie] village officials visited me, they saw my work… and they encouraged me to move downtown,” he said.
If not for the broader community support he received, Farooq said his dream of fully pursuing a career in art and design may never have come to fruition.
“I feel like my story will resonate with a lot of folks. I just want to encourage folks to pursue their passion, just get yourself to a point where, you know, [you’re] taking risks in a calculated form.”
“People always ask me, ‘You have an undergrad [degree] in computer science, you did an MBA, now you’re creating art?’ and I always tell them that I am here not because of my failures, I’m here because of my successes,” Farooq said.
“It’s not the desperation, it’s the accomplishments that got me to where I am. It helps understanding what the customer needs, and I put all those product management principles to create [these] art pieces, and I create one, and it just sticks.”
Creation Z is open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Friday with weekend hours currently being adjusted, according to Farooq.
Farooq said he also plans to teach calligraphy lessons at the gallery storefront, an idea inspired by past collaborations with the Chicago Calligraphy Collective.
“My goal is to make this space a place for experience…it’s a learning experience, it’s a visual experience, it’s a way for us to sit down and do interfaith discussions” and really “bring the community together,” he said.