Interview by Emily Hessney Lynch.

Published January 17, 2020.

Where are you from? How did you end up in Rochester?

Emmarae: I’m a Rochester native; I grew up in the Cobbs Hill area and live in the South Wedge now. Growing up, my family has always been really tied to the arts scene, so I was surrounded by inspiration. I’m a student at Nazareth College, double majoring in journalism and history. I’m a huge fan of the city and think it has so much potential for growth.

Krit: I’m from Thailand. I came to the U.S. ten years ago, and started at RIT for photography six years ago. I was trying to find a community of my own, and as I got involved in the local scene, I started to realize how much creativity flows in this city. People opened up their arms to be and brought me in with no questions at all. There’s this feeling that everyone wants to be each other’s friends and family, it’s unreal. I felt like Rochester was leading me here throughout my life. I was friends on Facebook with my English teacher from back in Thailand, and when I posted that I was going to RIT, they were like, “You know I’m from Rochester, right?!”

What is your favorite part of living in Rochester?

Emmarae: There are so many things! I think the number one thing is that Rochester is a big city but a small town where you can make connections with so many people. Everywhere I go I see friendly faces, everywhere I go feels like home. There’s something really special about the arts community right now- like with Current Seen and UUU Art Collective. There are different collaborations going on between smaller galleries, and connections between the art world. We also have so much history and so much to learn about from our past. People have a real appreciation for and pride in the city. There’s definitely something special going on here.  

Krit: First Fridays are one of my favorite things. Three or four years ago, I was trying to get more into my art, and went to a First Friday at Anderson Arts. I was checking out this photographer’s artwork, Richard Margolis, and we got to chatting about his work. He asked to see my work, and offered to let me show it there! I thought it was a scam! But someone had done something like this for him when he was my age, and he wanted to give back. Growing up in Thailand, being an artist is not an option. You have to be an engineer, a doctor, or a lawyer. Then I came to Rochester and saw everyone supporting artists. Our art scene is trying to broaden the scope of what art is- like they did a hair-related event for African American culture and brought barbers into UUU, it was cool.

What are some hidden gems you've discovered around Rochester?

Emmarae: My friend and I have been walking around downtown lately looking for historic things on buildings, like old signs or historic entryways. For me, that shows such a connection to the past and I find it fascinating. That intricate line of the past stays with us through time. ArtisanWorks is great, and so many people have not been there. They’ve expanded a lot in the past five years.

Krit: The Public Library downtown is phenomenal. I just found out that you can rent instruments there! They also have a green screen room you can rent out to do projects. Josh from Wicked Squid teaches music production classes there to underprivileged youth. Everything here is somewhat of a hidden gem. Left and right, everywhere I turn, is a gem. I live near the Owl House, and that strip of Monroe is great. The new seafood restaurant, Rella, is so amazing. Constantly running into someone you know makes you want to go out and make the city better.

What's the most unique or interesting event you've attended in Rochester?

Emmarae: We have a lot of nontraditional venues for music, like Small World Books and UUU. I used to go to house shows all the time- it’s cool that your friend’s house can be a venue and people from all over Rochester will go. It calls back to that sense of community.

Krit: There’s constantly something going on at the Bug Jar, amazing musicians coming through all the time, every single week. The arts and crafts movement has been huge too, we have so many craft fairs. Even our food scene is massive! I’m going broke trying out all this food around town. Lots of these places are honing into the local aspect, with so much being produced locally. You can go in every three months and the whole menu will have changed.

What's the best place to get a garbage plate? 

Emmarae: Dogtown, they have the best veggie plate.

Krit: Henrietta Hots. Something about everything they have, it just blends in well. I had no idea what to expect the first time I had one. When it came out, I thought, “It really looks like garbage.” It tasted good though! One time, our friend who loves competitive eating ate a garbage plate in a minute and a half.

What exciting things are on the horizon for Rochester's culture in 2020? 

Emmarae: More collaborations between different artists. More side projects of different bands- like Jessica Genius, a new side project of Joywave and KOPPS. 540WMain is doing important community work.

K: Maybird has a killer new album coming out this year. The vegan community is pushing out and growing. The Roc Vegan Festival is more extensive than Buffalo’s! From an RIT perspective, we’re seeing so much more collaboration between the student body and the community. The disconnect between the college students and the local scene is starting to diffuse. For example, the Op Shop has been working with RIT photographers to create amazing visuals.

Emmarae: There’s so much creativity going on in Rochester, and we want to be able to bridge those creatives. Rochester is teetering on the edge of being this internationally known cultural hotspot! Once people start coming together and these links are built, something really special and new will happen. 

Krit: We’ve got a bunch of local people trying to make something happen out of this city that people think nothing is happening in. The community is fighting for the city that they love and it’s being heard! 

What do you hope to see change in Rochester in 2020? 

Krit: Diversifying everything out everywhere. There’s a lot of gentrification going on; I’m not sure how I feel about lots of new housing coming in downtown. There are cases similar to taxpayer money supporting Midtown gym. Why aren’t we questioning the reasons behind it? Why not take that taxpayer money and put it into the school, support the teachers instead?

Emmarae: It does make me hopeful to see that suburbanites are speaking out on RCSD issues. There’s such a disconnect between people who live in the suburbs and people who live downtown. When I was younger, someone once asked my mom if we felt safe walking downtown, and we were shocked. We need countywide support for Rochester, more care and dedication from those who don’t live in the city.

Krit: A better public transportation network would help too. Lots of college students, especially international ones, don’t have a vehicle and can’t get involved in the city. 

Emmarae: I’d like to see Rochester not as a starting point but as a landing point. Right now, people see it as a jumping off point. But it’s a great city to be an entrepreneur! The city gives you what you put into it. A lot of people don’t feel at home because they haven’t done the searching to find the events and people that suit them.

Krit: It’s such an affordable place to be. 

Tell me a little bit about Floated. 

Emmarae: We’re an alternative arts and culture magazine, bridging creatives in the Rochester area and highlighting up and coming businesses and artists. We’re connecting Rochester on a national and international level as well, getting Rochester on the map as a cultural hot spot. 

What inspired you to start Floated? 

Krit: When I first came to RIT, I hated the city. I was stuck in Henrietta with nowhere to go. Once I put myself out there, the city took me in. I found out about Joywave, KOPPS, Maybird, and realized that Rochester is a big hub of creativity, arts, and music where I could find my own spot in the world. I thought, why not start a magazine to connect photography, music, and art and showcase how amazing the city is? We work with national and global artists.

Floated turned three in November 2019. We publish issues quarterly- they’re free online and available in print at Fuego.

What's your favorite piece you've done for Floated so far? 

Emmarae: The one that comes to mind immediately makes me feel melancholic. One of the first pieces I wrote for Floated was on Jon Lewis and his side project Mr. Loops. The interview and the whole process, seeing his dedication as both a creator and a preschool teacher in RCSD--it was powerful to write about how he connects music with community. 

Krit: Since I do the photography aspect, I don’t get to dive into personal topics as much. Everyone has touched my heart in one way or another. Floated has been one of my favorite projects I’ve done in my life in general! We have been able to work with a lot of big artists, like Meg Myers in Issue 8 and X Ambassadors in Issue 4.

Emmarae: Yes, PR folks have been helpful! We recently had Barns Courtney. We’re using these national artists to push the platform of what’s going on in Rochester into other cities as well. The majority of the magazine, like 75%, is Rochester creators, but that national artist on the cover convinces non-Rochester folks to pick it up.

Krit: Our goal is to make the magazine accessible to read. We are hoping to push out a subscription option for our upcoming issue, so more and more people have a direct way to receive it.

What advice would you give to creatives or someone who wants to start their own venture? 

Emmarae: Make connection wherever you go. Rochester is one of the best places to be able to make your name well known as a younger creative. Always be kind and support other artists around you. 

Krit: Put in what you want to get back. Lots of the time, people expect things to just be handed to them, but that doesn’t work anymore. Help people whenever you can. Don’t go out and help people with the expectation that you will get something back. I wanted to use this magazine to help people and shine a light on amazing things that aren’t being seen. Early on, I reached out to KOPPS to see if they wanted to do a shoot. I was nervous to email them, and a coworker discouraged me, but I did it and they said yes within five minutes! I went to their studio, hung out with them, took some photos. They ended up needing pictures for something, so I let them use the ones I took. We built a connection. They ended up being on the cover of our first issue, and then they played a free show with us to celebrate our launch. Open yourself up for people and they’ll open up to you too.