We recently connected with Miracle Kendall and have shared our conversation below.

Miracle, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

As I prepare to go into my senior year at MICA, I can’t stop thinking about senior thesis and all the possibilities of projects I could do for it. While living in Baltimore for the past 3 years I’ve not only had the pleasure of expanding my artistic practices in various ways, but also had the pleasure of being able to explore the city and meet new people. Growing up in D.C. and having been to Baltimore only once or twice before moving there I wasn’t sure what to expect, however living here has been nothing but a positive experience for me. Everywhere you go has ups and downs and it’s important to try to go into a space or place without any preconceived notions or opinions. My time in Baltimore when I’m not creating is filled with walking around enjoying nature, as well as taking note of the beautiful architecture that surrounds myself and others here. Over the past year I’ve become increasingly more interested in the concept of Eco-Brutalism, so much so that I decided to have that be a focus in my senior thesis. Eco-brutalism is Brutalism architecture intertwined with eco-friendly practices so you see a lot of greenery and plant life colliding with big concrete structures, essentially combining something “rough” or “closed off” with something that flows with energy and brings life to the world we live in. Living in cities for the majority of my life, I remember as a kid getting so excited when I was able to be in the woods or in grass! Even seeing the little plants that would grow up through the cracks of the sidewalk was cool to see. Eco-brutalism reminds me of the word resilience, something that I would describe Black people as even though we shouldn’t always have to be. When thinking of these connections it only made sense for me to combine Eco-brutalism and my love and desire to highlight my community when I can and as much as I can. While the project is not fully fleshed out yet and I have a lot of time to think, create and learn more. I am extremely excited to see where I end with this project and I cannot wait to show it!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m Miracle, a Black Queer artist in their 20’s whose goal is to continue to create and live with intention. I like to say I can do anything, though my creative practices tend to entail photography, painting, drawing and ceramics. However mixed media work and photography will always have a special place in my heart. Photography specifically has helped me with communicating with others and actively being able to interact with others. Going to The Field School in D.C. for my last year of middle school and all of high school, allowed me to push myself creatively a bit more. My sophomore year was when I fell in love with film photography and my teacher really pushed me to continue with it, something I would probably not have pushed myself to do alone. After that photography became my whole world, when I graduated high school I switched to digital photography because it was more accessible at the time. By the time I got to MICA, I was starting to allow myself to just explore. Whatever art practice or style I wanted to do I just…did. The satisfaction of getting emotions and energy out that I may not be able to express verbally is wonderful and my work is a way for people to get to know me, and see me in possibly one of my purest forms. I think limiting yourself is the worst thing you can do as an artist. I’ve been in positions where I’ve done so as a person and as an artist, all I can say now is I’m only interested in living freely. As I continue to grow I also understand that this is my main goal when interacting with and shooting my models/clients as well, for them to be free. Comfortability is key for both me and the subject because without it there’s really no harmony between photographer/artist and model/client. I put a lot of intention and energy into my work whether it’s my drawings, paintings or photos and all of my work is a reflection of me in some way. So when people look at my work I want them to feel. I’m not sure that I want to have a particular expectation for what feeling that is, as long as you can feel when you see my work or when you’re working with me. One of the things I’m most proud of is how I’ve used art as an outlet for my mental health. I’ve had times where the outlets I’m using are not healthy or are harmful to me, as of recent years I’m finally in a position where I am choosing this route. Where I am choosing me and my health for the better, I am very proud of myself for that.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Showing up. When a local artist has an exhibition or is throwing an event, if you can get to it why not show up? I know personally it means a lot to be able to see people pop out for me and other local artists! Support in the DMV can be hard to come by so when you see people really just showing up to be there for you, or because they like your work (whether they can afford it or not) it’s really nice to see. Also please do not tell artists how much their work should cost, if you cannot afford the asking price then that’s no problem. However, asking people to lower their cost or getting mad at the amount that it costs is odd to me. While our time is well spent making art, it still takes time and effort to create the work we do. We are not just charging you for nothing!

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I’ve definitely had to unlearn my people pleasing ways and unlearn backing down instead of sticking up for myself. It can be hard to advocate for yourself, but as people and definitely as artists it’s something we have to do! I think of myself as my biggest advocate/cheerleader and if I wouldn’t do it to myself, why would I let someone else do it to me?

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @districtimage and @mir.acle

Image Credits
Miracle Kendall (person who took the photos)