Painter who was internet sensation opens gallery in Williamsville, hopes to attract artists worldwide

WILLIAMSVILLE, N.Y. (WIVB) — A local man is drawing up success in the art world.

Zach Frank & Co. Art Gallery had its grand opening on Saturday in Williamsville. Owner Zach Frank’s unique style of painting is making a mark on art collectors.

Frank grew up in Williamsville and from an early age, he knew he wanted to be an artist. With a stroke of luck, he found his niche. He uses acrylic paint to make what he calls “dabs,” which is short for dabs of paint.

“Once this technique surfaced, I felt like I finally had a creative path and I’ve just been running on that path ever since,” Frank said.

In 2013, the painter started “The Problems Series” out of his mother’s garage.

“I applied the first dab of paint in an abstract work in 2013 and when I came back the following day, the sharp point hadn’t sunk down,” Frank said. “It stayed firm and was sharp to the touch. It became very fascinating to me.”

Frank’s art started leaving quite the impression.

“The first piece I ever created hung on the walls in this unit,” Frank said. “The painting sold in 2013 to a local businessman and he hung it in this unit when it was a juice shop.”

A few years after selling his first painting, Frank moved to Los Angeles and continued working on his series of paintings.

People from all over the world took notice, with his videos on social media receiving millions of views.

After his success in California, Frank is now ready to bring his talents closer to home. He’s the owner of his own art gallery located at 5461 Main St. in Williamsville — the same place that displayed his first-ever sold painting.

“So 12 years later, here we are in the same building,” he said. “It’s a full circle moment. Feels really great to be back in Buffalo and hopefully I’ll be bringing really high-quality contemporary art to Buffalo.”

Frank also hopes this draws in artists from around the world to Williamsville and Buffalo.

“Experiencing art in person is a very rewarding experience and a lot of things are moving into the digital era,” he said. “I want to bring artists that maybe you’ve seen online into this gallery so that you get to experience that firsthand.”

Anyone can stop by the art gallery, but there is one rule: “Please don’t touch the art because when you come in, you might want to touch the art. It’s very textured and very colorful and some of the paintings draw you in,” Frank said.

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Sarah Minkewicz is an Emmy-nominated reporter and Buffalo native who has been a part of the News 4 team since 2019. Follow Sarah on Twitter @SarahMinkewicz and click here to see more of her work.

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