
FLOWE STATE VOL. 2: ALMOST THERE, CURATED BY ALY KANGLEON
FLOWE STATE features playlists by creatives in our community. For this month, ALMOST THERE is curated by ceramic artist Aly Kangleon.

Hi Aly! How are you? Can you tell us about yourself?
Hello! I’m a ceramic artist and instructor from the Philippines. Right now, I’m dyeing some shirts because all my clothes are too bright for bird-watching. My feelings and environment inform my days (and my work) so I always try to be around nature. It’s such a reliable source of joy and wonder for me.

We love your pseudonym, ‘Manibalang.’ Can you share the significance of this Filipino word to you?
During the height of my depression, I isolated myself from loved ones with the promise of returning to their lives when I’ve become ‘a full person’ again. I deeply identified with manibalang, which translates to the state of near ripeness, reaching toward fullness. Almost there, but not quite. Over years of therapy, I eventually realized that I’ve been a full person all along and that fullness in life is a concept that accommodates — even encourages — expansion. Once we leap from the edges that keep us, there are always more edges, always more life to live and to share. Now, manibalang to me is a reminder that we’re constantly becoming, never made.



