the father and the son & the body of an unknown christ
by leah toledano & isabella gonzalez
For our collaborative pieces, Isabella and I began our work with a conversation about the transformative nature of queerness. After a contemplation on queer energy and what that might mean, we sought to transmute these ideas into something tangible. We spoke about the timeless nature that queerness takes on, as it constantly adapts and shape-shifts. Happiness, whimsicalness, and coalition building might still be possible even though violent institutions continue to instill trauma. But what happens when the queer body is no longer constricted?
Our results were a painting, a poem, and a photograph. The Father and The Son is Leah’s painting done with acrylic on canvas. Isabella’s poem is titled “The Body of an Unknown Christ,” and it’s accompanied by Leah’s photograph titled Blood. Bondage, biblical allusions, and curiosity.
Leah Toledano
Leah Toledano (they/she) is a senior at FCLC double majoring in English and Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. Their work seeks to deconstruct oppressive binaries and hierarchies with a focus on interactionality. Their writing and art prioritizes discussions about identity and identification, including contemplations on gender identity, sexuality, coalition-building, and otherization etc. They are interested in the intersections of theory and direction action, and their work has been featured in Honeysuckle Magazine and The Comma. They are currently an Editorial Board member on The Comma. In their downtime, they enjoy playing with their chunk kitty named Rye, as well as blasting music as they vaccum their apartment with their cordless Dyson.
Isabella Gonzalez (she/they) is currently a sophomore studying theatre with a playwriting concentration. Outside of working on studio productions, she also dabbles in poetry, fiction, and journalism. Aside from being published with The Comma, she has served as an editor on The Post Script and is a staff writer for The Observer.