Welcome
APRL MADE is a seed that’s been very slowly growing for the past few years. This, is it coming into fruition.
I first dreamed of this concept when I came to a personal crossroad. Disconnected from reality, with a bad case of tunnel vision for all the wrong things. I found myself questioning if I ever knew myself at all, and what truly was important to me.
I’ve been creating since I was a kid. I would spend hours working on original comic books, then make library cards for all of my family members and force them to stop in and support my small business. At a cost of course, a few centavos (Brazilian coins), that I’d end up losing by the end of the day.
Part of this creativity stemmed from necessity. My grandma ran a strict household and I can count on one hand the amount of times I was allowed to have a friend over, much less go to someone else’s place. This over protectiveness bred a shy and somewhat awkward kid. When I moved to the US and started attending public school, I was met with a lot of hurdles for a 6 year old. Making friends proved difficult for a number of reasons and the older I got the more I learned to imitate others, to try and fit in to what I concluded was normal and safe.
Years of this survival tactic created someone who lived on auto-pilot. It took a lot of bad moments, mistakes, and losses for me to realize I had drifted too far from myself. That’s when I, for the first time in a long time, started doing some self reflecting. I started painting again, writing poems in my notes app, and living as me. I’ve made incredible relationships the past few years that feel healthy and sustainable, with people who constantly inspire me just by being who they are.
That’s where APRL MADE came to be. I want to continue putting an active effort into creating and connecting with like minded people. I hope to inspire you to self reflect and reconnect with the little version of yourself.
My goal is for this to be a two way experience, because art is made to be viewed, so that it can be felt.