Between Skin and Stone

Abstract

Abstract This piece, written in the form of a letter to my son, explains the meaning of his name. In Spanish the word lienzo is a type of drystone wall. Spanning rural areas of Mexico, the lienzo has—for centuries—been a way to gently delineate space. I frame the composition of this hand-stacked structure, which is designed to accommodate movement in relation to the biopolitical technology of the U.S.-Mexico border fence, migrant dispossession, and my own family’s experiences navigating borders and cleaved spaces.