Meet Sayma Hossain

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sayma Hossain and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sayma, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking.
I believe in high risk, high reward.

In 2022, I took a big risk and quit my corporate 9-5 to pursue art/freelancing full-time. At that time, I received a mural assistant gig and a artist residency in Mexico. After years of deliberation, self-doubt, building a portfolio of new works, I took advice from peers, friends and my art community in Atlanta; these 2 opportunities were the catalyst to take the leap.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am a textile installation artist who navigates with found-objects, unorthodox quilt making and tapestry weavings. My practice revolves around repurposing textiles or once-discarded items and applying traditional techniques to the materials. Growing up at the cultural intersection of Bangladesh and the American South, my work highlights mental health in the South Asian diaspora from a western lens and idiosyncrasies on food waste. I received my BFA in Textile Design at Georgia State University in 2016. (very much from ATL :))

I have a few public installations across the South that I’m proud of. Some clients/works are a textile installation piece in Patagonia (Krog street market), A mural in collaboration with Demetri Stefan in 505 Peachtree rd (Emory University x Midtown Alliance), an installation at Peachtree Creek Greenway – Brookhaven, GA with Dashboard. I currently have work up at Atlanta Contemporary Museum.

No, it wasn’t easy. haha

Honestly I think I’m still overcoming challenges on a regular basis. Freelancing with public art, grants, artist residencies and gallery work, the opportunities are inconsistent and require a lot of investment within yourself.

One thing I’ve learned along the way is prioritizing your self-care/rest. Freelancing essentially means being your own boss or running a small LLC so I’ve learned how to create a schedule for myself, hire assistants for larger commissions, etc.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Wow yes!

So some of my fave restaurants:

Late nights eats:
Waffle House (if they’ve never been* ofc)
El Rey Del Taco (Buford Highway)
Pho 24 (Buford Highway)

Staplehouse (Edgewood)
Mujo – Omakase/Sushi bar (West Midtown)- Must make a reservation ahead of time*
SoSofed – Laotian (EAV) A yummy pop-up in OK YAKI on Sundays and Mondays only. (I work here! lol so a bit bias)*
Gaja – Modern Korean dive bar (EAV)
Gigi’s -Italian (Candler Park)
Ria’s Bluebird -Breakfast diner (Grant Park)
Homegrown – Southern Breakfast (Reynoldstown)

Jang Su Jang -Korean (Duluth)
Xi’an Gourment House -Chinese (Duluth)
Don Pedro- Mexican (Duluth)
*Great to spend time there and get Boba, cute bakeries~ (Hansel & Gretel bakery, Matcha Cafe Maiko, Sweet Hut)

I LOVE to hike, so if they have transportation + time:
-Indian Seats at Sawnee Mountain
-Tallulah Gorge
-Amicalola Falls
-Providence Canyon

Things to see/do:
-Walk on the Beltline is a classic
(start from Krog tunnel to Midtown, with plenty of things to see in between)
-Little five points, walk over after to Freedom Park for a picnic
-Go see art exhibitions! Check @art.calendar.atl to see what’s happening that week.
-Relax at Jeju sauna (Duluth)

Nightlife:
-Pisces (Edgewood)
-El Malo (Reynoldstown)
-DEF (raves in underground Atlanta)

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’d love to shout out 2 people!

Jasmine Nicole Williams and Neka King. Both are good friends, amazing artists/muralists, and peers in the art community.

Seeing how they both manage their freelancing and having multiple opportunities to assist them in their work was not only inspiring but also incredibly motivating for me to do it for myself!

Website: https://cargocollective.com/saymahossain

Instagram: @saymaa.h

Image Credits
Photographer for the main headshot is Zoa (@zOa) / Zoaphoto.com