Episode #89: Mira Mariah
Mira Mariah aka Girl Knew York is an artist, influencer, tattoo artist, advocate and mother currently working and residing in Brooklyn NY. She has a signature style that clients in NYC, across the country and abroad come to her for. The imagery in her art includes women in all their various bodily forms, abilities and ways of being, along with symbols from the natural world.
Tattooing provides Mira with an intimate way to connect with her fans in person and lead her to grow a close knit community on an instagram that boasts over 200k followers. As a young, disabled, Latina mother, she shows her fans that they don't have to live the life society expects them to-even that she dares to value glamour and romance is an act of rebellion.
Mira Mariah thinks tattoos are rock 'n' roll, and so are disabled people. As she puts it, disabled people have to be really “innovative and creative”--and what’s more rock 'n' roll than that? Though Mira didn’t always associate her identity with the word “disabled,” especially when she was a child, she’s developed that sense of herself as she’s gotten older and transitioned to life with a prosthetic limb. On today’s episode, I talk with Mira about the role that fashion has played in her life and why she takes a maximalist approach to joy. We discuss the invisible challenges that amputees and people with prosthetics face--like the physical pain that can flare up. Finally, we talk about Mira’s career as a tattoo artist, why she loves New York and the people in it, and her goal for her life’s work.
“I think that disabled people are inherently really rock and roll, and then we get left out of the conversation, and that’s really frustrating. Because you have to be really really rock and roll and innovative and creative and kind of strange to be disabled.”
Here are some of the things Mira and I chatted about:
The experience of growing up as a disabled person, but why the word “disability” didn’t exist for her
Her amputation surgery and transition to a prosthetic, and the excitement she felt at that time
The reaction of her mom’s friends when they learned about the prosthetic: “But she’s so pretty”
What the world “disabled” means to her now, and how she connects with other disabled people
Her focus on visibility for disabled people in fashion, particularly disabled femmes in the style world
Her relationship to her prosthetic: day-to-day frustrations coupled with a grand sense of acceptance
The physical pain that amputees can experience, and how it can flare up in the wrong moment
Why she lives her life spontaneously, rather than focusing only on big events planned for the future
Her daughter’s understanding of her disability, and how her daughter talks to her friends if they ask
Why it’s important for people to be aware of the invisible or hidden aspects of being an amputee
How transforming skincare from necessity (which it is, for her leg) to luxury changes things
The importance of moving her body (walking, dancing with her daughter), and also periods of rest
When it comes to mental health, aiming to fill her whole life with joy--”Marie Kondo but maximalist”
The pieces of art she’s most proud and honored to create, like this family portrait for Rachel Cargle
How, in her tattoo business, she is thoughtful about making individual plans for individual people
Helping her daughter develop the tools to express herself and vocalize her needs in a direct way
“My biggest mental health trick is just leaning into joy.”
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