Humans of Downey - Carlos

"This story is about an incident during the summer between my junior and senior years of high school and how it changed the path I was headed down to a better path. I was an artist, I loved to draw, but I also loved to tag. I remember this day very well. It is a clear image in my memory. I was hanging around this day with a group of guys. They were a few years older than me and I thought I was cool to be with them. They decided to go tagging on the freeway. It was broad daylight. This was not the brightest of ideas. So we went to the 710 freeway where we knew of an entrance to get us in.

"When we were done and leaving, the cops were waiting for us. So, I thought, if I run to the riverbed I can get away. But instead, I fell in the water because of the moss under the water was so slippery. For a second I was under the water and the current was pretty strong. I got myself up, though, and continued across the riverbed to the other side. But the cops were waiting for me there. So they took all four of us to the Bell police station. I remember sitting there all soaked and smelly thinking, 'What am I doing here? I'm not this type of person.'

"In my senior year I met this teacher named Mr. Synop. It was his first year of teaching and he was the most inspirational teacher I have ever had. He would approach me after class and tell me that I had done a good job that day. There was another teacher, my art teacher, that kind of watched me grow up in high school. She had me as a freshman and now as a senior. So she saw how I had developed. I wasn't a bad student. I actually had straight As during my senior year.

"Mr. Synop would sit me down sometimes and tell me that I was a leader in the class. He said that if I tell the class to hush up and listen, they do it. He said I was an example for the others by always doing my homework. Also, I would help anyone that needed help in the class. That year turned me around. First, because of the recognition that I'm not going to waste my life in police stations. Second, because of the attention and encouragement that my English teacher and art teacher gave me. Now, I'm a better person for it."

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Into the wood

Julio, Stella, and I also share a love of wood. Like the metal, wood is everywhere�but more so! The house is framed in wood, and it is all left bare, with the knots and the bark adding to the beauty.

Julio's floors are put together from many kinds and colors of wood�not just because that's what he had on hand, but also because the variations are beautiful and more interesting than a single kind and color of wood. In many places, words that relate to their lives are inlaid into the wood. Some of the wood is highly finished and smooth. Some is textured and dinged in a way that adds a whole nother (yes, Google says it really is a word) dimension to the beauty. Gnarled tree trunks get made into strange but comfortable chairs.



Huge wooden planks become dining room tables that will seat the whole extended family (or into a desk where there's always room to spread out your work). Thick logs get carved into jaguars (above) and eagles.



And Julio doesn't let anything go to waste. The little pieces that most carpenters sweep up and throw away get used to cover up ugly concrete columns. Or as material for an artist's rendition of the house, made entirely from wood.

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What Julio has wrought

Wrought iron: iron that has been heated and is then worked with tools to change its form and properties. The term �wrought� comes from the past participle of the word �worked.� Wrought iron literally means "worked iron."

Wrought iron, although prevalent, is just one of many metals found in Julio and Stella's beautiful home. I soon realized that we shared a love of metal. From the three wrought iron staircases, to the numerous custom-made display shelves, to the rows of hanging cast iron and copper pots and pans (not pictured), metal is everywhere, and most of it is handmade by Julio himself.

Here are just a few examples of the artwork that Julio has created from metal.

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Humans of Downey - Steve

"The very first art piece I remember making was when I was 10 years old. I still have it. I did it in crayon and it was titled, 'Misery on a New York Sidewalk.' It was cubic and very abstract. Interestingly, I had never been to New York or even seen abstract art before. It was received well, though, my mom loved it.

"The first piece I ever displayed in public was about nine months ago. I've spent my working career as a writer and editor. Over the years I have created multiple art pieces for my own enjoyment. A while ago, I decided that before I died of a heart attack with a bunch of art pieces in my garage that will probably get thrown away, I would get them out there for others to see. So, about a year and a half ago I started visiting art galleries and talking with the owners, asking them how could I get involved in the art world. I went to a place called The Orange County Center for Contemporary Art. The director there liked my stuff and he encouraged me to get my pieces in the public eye by entering my art in places that had open calls for art. I had my first piece of art displayed in public nine months ago at that gallery.

"My creative process is usually like this: I work at night at a workbench with a lampshade overhead. Then I try to step inside the piece. It's like I'm part of the piece and wandering around in it or like I'm in a dream world. So all my pieces are actually psychological or dream-like. It's unconscious. I don't do anything with an end product in mind. I just start to build on what's there. It seems to have a life of its own."

~ Steve

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