We had the good fortune of connecting with Karl Niiranen and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Karl, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I’ve always had interest in pursuing a creative path whether it be audio, visual, or otherwise. I participated in band & orchestra in middle school. I also tried to take some art classes but these outlets didn’t quite click with me. It wasn’t until 2016 when I attended a festival ran by the Tipper and Friends crew that I saw artists like Android Jones and Johnathan Singer performing live visuals for musicians and realized this was something I wanted to try and truly chase after. After learning how to utilize some of these softwares and having the chance to perform in front of a crowd I was immediately drawn into pushing it as far as I could. The feeling of creating & manipulating art while being able to share it with others instantly became one of my favorite experiences.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
When I initially started trying to make digital content I had been heavily inspired by Johnathan Singer. Most of his content is remixing still images of paintings or digital works from visionary artists such as Hannah Yata, Igor Volos, Jean Pierre Arboleda, Randal Roberts, & many others. His visuals inspired me to collaborate with local artists & remix their artwork in my own style. I’m grateful for the friends I was able to work with early on such as Alexis Logwood (@redpandacritter) and Morgan Warren (@morganwarren). Having unique content like this was a big help to stand out from other VJs that may have just been purchasing content rather than creating their own.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Exploring Little Five Points is always a fun time, There’s a wide range of shops from thrift stores, glass headshops, jewelry stores, restaurants, & some great venues for live music. Krog Street is a great place for seeing all kinds of street art, as well as the Beltline which shows you sights from most of the city. Atlanta has some great parks such as Centennial and Candler. Atlanta Botanical Garden, ABV Gallery & the High Museum of Art also regularly have different displays worth checking out.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I already mentioned them, but will continue to credit Tipper and Friends for the way they curate their events. From the first event of theirs I attended to the most recent they have always pushed the envelope of promoting everyone involved & giving them the space to really display their craft to the fullest. I also wouldn’t have been able to dive in as quickly as I did without help from my friend Joe Hoyla (Optical Empathy). He’s an incredibly talented projection mapper, stage designer, lighting designer, VJ, & pretty much any kind of production tech you could ask for.

Website: https://linktr.ee/diethylamidevisuals

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/die_thylamide/

Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/diethylamide__

Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/diethylamidevisuals

Other: https://superrare.co/diethylamidevisuals

Image Credits
the third image is a collaboration with Uhnomaly, the 7th image is a collaboration with Papa Bear

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