The sharp scent of resin and the fragrance of colorful flowers fill the air of a small workshop in the heart of Kabul, where light streams through the windows onto the surfaces of resin vessels, paintings, and decorative items in shades of gold, red, and purple, bringing the colors to life in a gentle shimmer. Amidst this harmony of color and light, what captures attention above all else is the quiet focus of Nadia Abdullahi, who carefully and patiently blends colors into resin, transforming each drop into a fresh design within silicone molds.
The “ZN” resin workshop is one of the few centers that has introduced resin art in Afghanistan and teaches it to girls, women, and even several young men. The products that emerge from this workshop are not merely decorative items; they are the result of the effort and creativity of women who, amid increasingly restricted educational and employment opportunities, seek to learn skills and generate income, in a space where Taliban restrictions and unwritten and formal rules, especially in recent years, have cast a shadow over the lives of women and girls.
Nadia Abdullahi established this workshop approximately one and a half years ago with the aim of providing training and income-generating opportunities for girls who have been left behind by the education system. Her introduction to resin art, however, dates back to 2018, when she first discovered it through social media videos. She says that the roots of this passion trace back to her childhood, when painting and handicrafts were an inseparable part of her life, but her serious journey with resin began with that first online encounter.
Abdullahi initially pursued this art through self-teaching, but in order to advance professionally, she traveled to Iran and participated in specialized resin training courses. Despite the high costs, this experience, by her own account, became an investment in her professional future and shaped the direction of her career.
Speaking to the Hasht-e Subh Daily about the beginning of her work, she says: “I first discovered resin in 2018 through social media… I soon realized that for real progress, I needed professional training. For this reason, I traveled to Iran and attended the workshop of one of the leading instructors in this field. The training was costly, but I was able to learn specialized resin techniques and earn a certificate in the discipline.”
Today at the “ZN” studio, Abdullahi introduces dozens of students to the core techniques of resin art, ranging from clockmaking and painting to the creation of decorative vessels, gift items, and mixed media pieces. The majority of students are girls and women between the ages of 18 and 30 who are looking for ways to earn income from home, though a limited number of men are also among them.
The training courses at this workshop are conducted in an entirely practical and intensive format, with students introduced to the production of resin items over a period of three to six days in a workshop setting. Upon completing the course, three months of follow-up support, including consultation and guidance, is also provided to each student.
To date, approximately 300 students have been trained at this center, of whom nearly 100 are actively working in the field of resin art, and a number have launched their own home-based businesses. The center has also created direct employment for approximately 10 people and has indirectly provided income-generating opportunities for dozens of other women.
Abdullahi believes that, despite restrictions, women can build a new path for their future by learning skills. She says: “I always tell my students that in Afghanistan, a girl must first overcome her own fears and mental limitations. If that happens, she can find her own way.”
Yet the path for her and her students has not been without challenges. Abdullahi says that in the beginning, few people in Afghanistan were familiar with resin art, which made selling products difficult. She adds: “Our biggest challenge was market-building. We had to introduce people to resin before we could sell the product. There is still a long road ahead, but today more people know this art than in the early years.”
Sourcing raw materials has been another persistent challenge for the center, as the materials are largely imported from outside the country and are not easy to obtain. Abdullahi says, however, that “ZN Resin” now, in addition to instruction, also supplies a portion of the raw material needs of practicing artists.
Alongside these difficulties, what stands out most in the workshop is the current of life itself. Girls carefully mix colors, fill molds, and wait as works of art take shape from raw materials. For many of them, this workshop is not merely a training space; it is an opportunity to experience independence and redefine their future under Taliban rule.
Zohal, one of the students, has been training at this workshop for six months. She says that before joining this course, she spent most of her time at home and was searching for a skill that could generate income. Now, she has learned everything from mixing colors to creating a wide range of products, and each new piece she completes represents growth and hope.
She adds that learning this skill has changed her outlook on the future, and she encourages other girls not to abandon the path of education, even when circumstances are difficult.
In another corner of the workshop, Nadia Abdullahi moves between tables, at times correcting a color blend, at times repositioning a mold, and at times encouraging a new student with nothing more than a smile. For her, every product is not merely a decorative object; it is part of a larger journey.
She speaks of a broader future: expanding training to other provinces, establishing specialized stores across the country’s four geographic zones, and building a marketplace that can provide greater employment opportunities for women. In her vision, this path has only just begun.
In the warm, colorful space of the workshop, somewhere between light and resin, ideas take shape and become reality. Each small piece of resin that leaves this place is not merely a work of art; it is part of a larger story, the story of women who, in the midst of restrictions, have found a way to build their own futures.
Resin is a transparent material that hardens when combined with a hardener and is used in the making of jewelry, paintings, and decorative items. In a context where employment opportunities for women in Afghanistan are limited, many of them, drawing on creativity and skill-building, strive to carve out independent career paths for themselves, paths that both generate income and enable a more active presence in society.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
