As a child, Mexican-American artist Miranda Alvarado’s mother would often braid her hair.
“My mom is actually a hair stylist,” Alvarado said. “She’s always done my hair. It’s the way that she likes to show love the most.”
Now, Alvarado is using that personal connection to create fashion designs that incorporate hair and braiding in their aesthetic. Those designs helped the Greensboro native win the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) X Melvin and Monique Rodriguez Family Foundation Scholarship, a $50,000 prize that will help further her artistic development.
“I feel so grateful,” Alvarado said. “I’m excited to start making stuff, to start experimenting…I’m excited to learn.”
This week we caught up with Alvarado, a senior at the Savannah College of Art and Design, to talk about her art, her background, and how she imbues family tradition into her work.
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Tell me about your artistic journey. When/how did you get interested in visual art?
I’ve always been interested in art. As little kids, everyone draws and colors, but I guess I stuck to it. I always knew I wanted to do something in art. I had sketches in from elementary school.
I was super big into Tumblr fashion; it was kind of funny for an elementary school student. But as I grew up, it felt a little bit unrealistic to me, so I kind of started to think of art as a hobby, but when it came to picking colleges, nothing else appealed to me.
The scholarship application asked applicants to submit concepts exploring hair. How did you interpret that?
Hair is such a big, important part of my culture already, so it came naturally to do a braiding concept. It’s such a way that communities in different cultures interact. Braiding is a way for us to connect to our indigenous roots and culture.
Being Mexican-American, you can feel like an outcast sometimes, like you don’t belong to your culture. But my mom has always put braids in my hair, and it was part of my normal daily life. That part of my culture makes me feel more connected and rooted.
Every region of Mexico has a different way to do braids. There are different rituals around braids, and I think it’s such a nice way of unifying everything. Where we’re from—San Luis—the way they braid their hair, they kind of do a thick crown braid mixed with yarn. And even though I wasn’t raised in Mexico, my parents are from Mexico, and my house is very Mexican-looking. Even though I’m here in America, it’s like they brought Mexico with them.
Talk to me about “Meximalismo,” a word you use to describe your aesthetic.
It’s basically “maximalism” in Spanish but with Mexican culture. Something that celebrates the colors of Mexico, the textures of Mexico, everything Mexico.
I’m such a huge maximalist. In Mexico, there are so many subcultures. There’s cowboy, there’s mariachi, there’s streetwear. I kind of tried to incorporate all of them without it feeling too incohesive. I would sketch out one style, and then I would break them apart and mix and match them until I got a combination that felt good and unified. And the braids made it cohesive.
Right now is a particularly fraught time for immigrants in this country, especially those of Latin/Hispanic descent. Do politics or current events play into your artistic practice?
I definitely feel like one of the main purposes of my art is to celebrate my culture and break the negative stereotypes that are going around, to show how beautiful the culture is and how beautiful the people are. It’s my responsibility; I’m pulling from my culture, I’m celebrating it, I’m showcasing it; it’s my responsibility to advocate for it. My work is always a little bit politically driven, to show the best of my culture to try to counter negative stigma.
My mom really loves it; she’s really happy about it. She loves giving me ideas. I always go to her to ask for feedback; same thing with my dad. He’ll help me research things; they’re my biggest supporters.
My designs are also a way to thank them for all their sacrifices. I wouldn’t be here if they hadn’t taken the opportunity to move here without anything.
You’re from Greensboro. Tell me about your roots/experience here. How does the city influence your art?
I was born and raised in Greensboro. I went to Northeast Guilford High School. I was always around Black and Brown communities. I was around the culture. I’ve always been proud of my culture because I’ve been surrounded by it. All my friends speak Spanish and are from different parts of Mexico.
I have to ask. Do you have a favorite restaurant in the city?
I like El Jarocho. They make great quesadillas.
What are your plans for the scholarship funds?
Right now, what it looks like, we’re going through our concept development stages. Over the summer, we had to make three different concept books for three different ideas full of swatches and designs.
The concept that I’m doing, my professor wants to mix two of my ideas: female soldiers who fought in the Mexican Revolution and mix it with iconic Mexican ragdolls. It is about feminism and reclaiming power that was taken, about matriarchy. I’m going to put the money towards buying authentic fabrics, reaching out to Mexican artisans, maybe learning how to make my own lace. I’m going to try to make it as authentic as possible, for the sake of authenticity, and it’s another way to learn about my culture.
What is your future goal/vision for your art?
Ultimately getting out of school … I would love to get as much experience as possible. I love every single aspect of the fashion industry, from photography to styling and design. Once I know how to do everything, I would love to have my own brand.
I feel so grateful. I think there’s always a little guilt that comes from being a child of immigrants. You always kind of feel indebted to [your parents]. But now I can be like, ‘You don’t have to worry about my last year; I have it covered.’ It’s nice to have all my hard work and all of their hard work recognized.
