• In Spanish, Principle can be translated to Principio, a word for both an axiom and an origin. The origin of Difference; the physical beginning of Difference and Diversity. A space or moment of infinite potential. An unfolding singularity, a pulsating portal. A cosmos of unrestricted flows and constant transformation. A mythical place which shapes life.
• Principle as in Law, or norm. The Principle of Difference would affirm Difference as a fundamental force, such as Gravity or Electromagnetism. Diversity and Difference as universal forces operating in the Cosmos: Nothing is two times the same. The Divine is perpetual transmutation.
Opening a channel between the body and metaphysics, N.A.S.A.L. presents for ARCO Madrid 2024 The Principle of Difference (EPD), a project by Peruvian artist Luis Enrique Zela-Koort. EPD presents visual and sculptural, embodied narratives to speak of Difference, or Diversity, as fundamental forces. Delving into Zela’s research into “Queer Metaphysics,” the works conjure new potentials for the body and desire across time and space: organic landscapes of silicone sphincters, kinetic latex sculptures, or glass pieces containing a synthesis of the primordial soup (hypothetical substance where life on Earth originated). Showing living beings in constant transformation, or emphasizing the endless potential of Life, the project seeks to imagine worlds where all living forms can coexist and co-create their reality. Displacing the viral logic of modern desire, for relations built through interconnection and symbiosis.
Drawing inspiration from Latin-American biodiversity, UFO sightings, animation mythologies, Andean syncretism, and pre-modern cosmovisions, Zela seeks to recontextualize historical perspectives. In light of scientific and theoretical advances, they develop new characterizations of nature that destabilize the principles of Modernity. Denying the position of a perfect observer, our separation from the world, or the staticity of matter, EPD articulates the micro and macro cosmic to rewrite our vision of the Universe. In this line of work, Zela opens porosities in the barriers that determine and limit our contemporary relationship with nature. Using traditional techniques in conjunction with digital manufacturing processes, combining ancient and industrial materials, they seek to create meta-narratives that question progress and productivity, and the necessary transformation of concepts such as culture, spirituality and knowledge.