Sometime around April I saw a collection of prints being spread around on Instagram and I thought they were pretty neat especially the "Stimulus" print. I thought to myself these go so hard! I asked around and turns out he was also a creative within the 956. When I'm not too sure I'll end up asking a few individuals or the creator themselves if they are from The Valley. I'm glad I asked. This week's feature is (Alan) Miranda , @GreyTurns2White.
We start with (Alan) telling us what he's been into recently "biking, good music, collecting toys, tending my girlfriends garden specially the bugs i run into" I also recently picked up biking, but I haven't biked as much as I would want to due to my schedule and other things popping out. I collect prints and I certain need one of Alan's print's for my collection. He continues by mentioning some of his favorite locals starting with those involved with music "I’m glad to be able to call a lot of them friends, s/o Isaiah Flowers, Joelito, Joseph Stingly, Brandon Ybañez, all the homies at SideAffects and the Sycamore guys." Moving onto the arts "S/o Louie Looter, KateeMartt, Maddy, DrSosa LaDama, Carlos Cruz & no paradigms" and last but not least the businesses "S/o CURA, NoForma, ValleyVintageSuppply." I also have a Sycamore feature in the works! I actually listened to Stingly's music along with hearing a lot about some of the individuals mentioned. I'll be sure to look up those who I don't know.
Starting with his early beginnings Alan shares the moments he started being creative "If lego sculptures count i’d say since I was 4 years old." I would agree. Even I would create lego based anything as a kid with my friends. Of course some legos had instruction booklets, but fuck that. Just let your mind run wild and create what you want to create. Even to this day with anyone creating it's your work and if you have your own template on your process or how you beginning then go for it, but sometimes just let yourself "create" as if you were playing with legos.
From legos to how latest works are, what exactly lead to it "Before my intro to illustrating and art making photography really started it all for me . My parents got me an iPod touch from the pawnshop when I was in middle school, we didn’t have cable or WiFi back then so there really wasn’t much to do besides be outside n ride bikes with my friends. I remember downloading IG and seeing the urban photography and I was like woah I wanna make my own stuff too I built a love for capturing images, laying the foundation while just having fun n going into abandoned places. A lot of people liked what i was doing and i just kept it moving, as I grew older my work matured and i started shooting with local creatives and friends and just never looked back since. It wasn’t until the end of my junior year in High School that I got into my school’s art program, i wanna shout out Mrs.Karam my art teacher that gave me that little push I needed I always liked drawing but she really let me see for myself what was possible and it’s really almost unlimited. Since then I figured I could merge these two skills and continue making work with substance." If you enjoy what you are doing and seeing yourself grow along with that positive feedback then it's all good! I also had support from my radio supervisor who told me to just go for it and create this page being Outinthe956. Sometimes we do need that push, but with Alan he sparked his interest with photography, but he also put in the work. Everything has lead him to being the creative he is now.
From the photography to the illustrations is there anything Alan wishes to experiment with? "too many things, sculpting, architecture, wood working, interior design, & ceramics I eventually want to learn about all these crafts in my life time
I find the process of creating and building fascinating, so anything in that realm excites me." I think a ceramic version of the "Stimulus" would be super cool or a sculpture version of it. There is so many mediums/crafts to try, but I would say TRY IT. You never know what will catch your interest if you don't do it. I want to try doing videos and I have ideas, but I just need to get up and do it. Too many ideas, but for sure we have to stick to one a time or it seems like way too much.
What are some tools used for these creative works? Some look like they involve spray cans/stencils to other creative tools as he says "Yea you’re right, I’ve been keeping things physical with my art and it’s probably gonna stay like that for as long as I can. I’m always on the look out of new materials, brushes, papers, inks, and etc so literally anything I can incorporate into my pieces I’m willing to work with." I tried stencils once in art class and that was hard, but it was also an experience. The time and effort that goes into it is worth it in the end for sure especially when it comes down to using the spray can. Looking forward to seeing what gets involved in the future works.
Is there a certain process that comes when creating a piece due to "keeping it physical" as he explains "often I treat it like a puzzle. Sometimes I’ll unconsciously make many sketches, look at the results and see what fits with what and take it from there, other times there’s a set idea and other times it shows itself up I don’t allow myself to feel boxed in so it’s always different." There is so many ways that feeling structured can be a downfall it seems or rather a step behind if you keep yourself to one "process" to ones work. It comes in many shapes and forms for sure.
Will we be seeing any more visual works such as "Dosage 001" in the future?
"Yessss, that one came out of now where on the go !
My friends at @SideAffects (a House music collective) were dropping their first collaborated album and I loved it so much I had to do something for promo." It looked like stop motion to me and I love that! I'm excited to see more for sure!
Have you worked with any other creatives before? If so, who were they and what did it involve? "Yes a lot of folks, we’ve shot music videos, promo, cover art, look books and a lot of other stuff, most memorable shoots have been with Ayo, Isaiah flowers, Maddy from Noodl, Ab, Carlos from No forma and so many other madly talented individuals. I’ve learned so much from all these people & it’s always a pleasure with them." It sure must be an experience working with so many creatives and helping their visions come to life! A toast to these and to many more to come!
Following the name "grey turns to white" does that follow the color schemes Alan uses or as he says "haha I can’t say no to that one, most of my work does follow these muted color pallets but it’s funny because at first it just felt right I didn’t really think too much about it If I can remember correctly I’m sure it had something to do with my coloring blinding condition it’s really nothing too crazy i can see every color in the rainbow just think about going into your photo editing settings and moving the saturation slider down by 15%, that’s what my eyes see
sometimes a lot of these colors become muted and I mistake them often when I’m in low light settings." That's actually interesting. I thought "greyturns2white" due to color palette, but there's actually a meaning behind it due to his "coloring blinding condition." To which he continues with "sometimes I like to think of it as 'Grey' means = a thing, place, person (my work) Turns 2 white = Meaning Purification
Making art is my coping mechanism this is how I speak without having to write a letter. This is my expression tool and in every piece there's signs of healing and pain.
In this process I disassembled myself and my thoughts and turn them into something beautiful and appealing to my eyes. It’s like I’m trying to save myself and bring myself to justice in a single act." As he mentions his coping mechanism and the relations of both colors "Grey means = a thing, place, person (my work) Turns 2 white = Meaning Purification" being once his piece his complete then he has coped, but what if it isn't complete? That is another question, but I'd like to think that if it isn't complete then it has been scrapped and redone to fit his "purification" leading to the final piece being a "grey turned to white."
From what I've see what art style would Alan say he has "it’s constantly morphing but somewhere between Surrealism & Iconography" but, mentioning if he could come up with a name for his own style he said "I could never come up with a good enough name, pay attention to my work and maybe you could help me on that one after all I’ve already done all the hard work >:)." His name itself could be the style "greyturns2white" looking upon the color palette yes these are grey tones, black, and white. Which are "simple" colors, but to me grey makes me think of rain clouds or a gloomy day, but looking upon his work leaves me wanting more especially from the video. So In the end I also get "purified" taking it all and seeing the details added to complete piece of work. Not just a style, but passed on to the those witnessing the work as well.
Alan shares his thoughts on the local scene in The Valley,
"It’s thriving and it’s exciting
Refreshing seeing things coming back to life"
Along with one final comment,
"Currently working on a body of work I’d love to exhibit by the end of the year so tag along for the long run if you wanna see that :)"
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