The pineapple is native to South America and its indigenous name ananá means "excellent fruit." Throughout history and different cultures, the pineapple has been represented as a connecting element between two worlds, the material and the spiritual, the external and the internal. With the arrival of the Spanish in America, it began to be related to the female image and it also acquired the meaning of wealth and hospitality. These particularities were the starting point for the exploration I undertook.

 

This work is the result of a research process on pineapple and its relationship with the human body. Despite being completely different, pineapple and the human body share certain characteristics. Inside, the heart of the pineapple bears a resemblance to the spine, as, like it, it is strong and rigid. Both the heart and the spine function as the main structure that supports the body. In the space in between is the pulp. It is juicy, fleshy and malleable. Like muscle fibers, it shapes the body and envelops its structure. The exterior is perhaps the area where they share the most characteristics. The skin of both is the barrier that separates the external world from the internal one, it is a barrier that attracts and repels, protects and isolates.

 

My relationship with the pineapple began with its dissection. I skinned it of all its elements and studied it for a period of four months. Its textures, smells and flavors allowed me to build a body awareness that allowed me to relate it to my body. Its porosity and roughness characteristics, its scars, and its deformities, among others, were the starting point to bring it to an aesthetic level through glass and other materials.