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Arts & Communication A mean, the body. A mean body

Her husband was a political prisoner, and thanks to the
church, he was not killed or disappeared. Thanks to the
church, my grand aunt and her family found refuge in
Canada, where they live up to date, all while the other twin’s
husband was a militant for the dictator. The separation of
the two twins inspires me to fiercely defend that America
is a continent, not a country. This belief allows my family
still gets to be in one same place. My fabric is not white, nor
indigenous enough. The qualifications might vary from
Chilean, Hispanic, Latino, Arab, mix of more than one,
prefer not to say, or just other. Eight dollars a yard, that is
always the deal I get.
I unmolded each of the pieces and started placing them Figure 2. 78 off me, sculpture, Plaster of Paris (New York, September 2021).
on the floor atop a brown Kraft paper sheet. Placed one
next to the other, with approximately a 2-inch separation
between the borders of the paper and the pieces themselves. common type of cross, for me, is the one where two lines
This layout fitted 15 pieces per row, with a total of five rows. meet perpendicularly, forming a boundary and serving as
The last row exceeded the grid by three columns due to the starting point for the creation of space. A square can be
created using four points and four lines that meet (cross)
the presence of 78 pieces. While it resembles a grid, the perpendicularly with each other. Only two lines meet at
alignment is neither perfect nor perpendicular. The pieces a single point. In a grid, these lines are paired according
of the Plaster exhibit unique molds, sizes, textures, and to the space they create vertically and horizontally. These
colors (Figure 2).
pairs are called columns (probably referencing the human
When I wake up in the morning, it is because of the form) and rows. At the very least, one column and one
alarm on my phone. I usually hit the snooze button once or row are necessary to create space, and this, for me, is the
twice, get up, put on my slippers, turn up the heater a bit, primal possible grid. Columns run vertically, and rows
walk to the kitchen about six steps away, fill in the water run horizontally, each consisting of two lines that are
boiler, plug it into the wall, and turn it on. Next, I walk to supposedly parallel to each other, so when they cross,
the bathroom, another six steps away, turn on the room they do it perpendicularly — enough. To form a grid, a
light I just left, and get into the only other room there is. minimum of four lines is needed to create space. A square,
It is a studio apartment. I turn the bathroom light on, turn a rectangle, or just a quadrilateral, unparalleled, figure.
on the shower, max hot, turn on the bath fan, kick off my In the name of the Father, the Son, and the holy spirit,
slippers, step into the shower (I usually sleep naked, so amen. May be I just needed space, or at least the virgin to
there is no need to undress again), turn the water to be be acknowledged on the cross. Who knows.
slightly colder, pump some body soap from the dispenser,
apply it to my body, particularly armpits and groin, pump I like inventorying, and I do it through grids. There must
some face wash, and apply it to my face. Then, I turn be something about ownership or perhaps control — to
around a couple of times, make sure there is no soap in have the faculty to move around and order pieces that
my body, and get out of the shower. By this time, the water one believes belong together (or not). Deleuze talked
in the boiler has just boiled. I lived in this apartment from about identity and resemblance as nothing more than
January to December 2001. Two four four East Houston inevitable illusions or concepts of reflection. Resemblance,
Street, pronounced “how-stun” not “hue-stun,” I must then, shows our inherent need to think about differences
[7]
remember. within categories of representation . It makes sense that
there is a need for (self) representation, and belonging,
Un limón, medio limón, dos limones. perhaps. Hence, a resemblance appears. And all that is not
3. Let’s start with the cross resemblant enough (subjective to the subject’s perception),
is different. We make up categories because not all
One crossing cannot hold space; it can be described as differences are resemblant between each other, and so on.
two lines converging at a single point. Imagine crossing It is a repetitive, almost infinite process. If we could not
your fingers between your two hands, with your arms make up these categories, then we would not be able to see
not attached to your shoulders that are joined by the a difference, and hence, repetition. Moreover, if we cannot
spinal column and, ultimately, skull; in this configuration, see the difference, then everything is all, and all is nothing.
you would not be able to hold anything either. The most This might sound a bit too abstract, but it makes me think

Volume 1 Issue 2 (2023) 4 https://doi.org/10.36922/ac.1137