NATALIA DOMÍNGUEZ
Cali, Colombia
My name’s Natalia Domínguez.
I’m Colombian and I have always lived here. I write sometimes, whenever I have the time, I think it’s the activity that I enjoy the most.
I studied political science years ago and recently I’ve been working in the field of social projects, human rights and citizen security.
I feel passionate about different things but I think it’s hard for me to focus on just one or being consistent. Within those things there’s astrology, fashion, photography, films, literature, philosophy and cooking.
I’m Colombian and I have always lived here. I write sometimes, whenever I have the time, I think it’s the activity that I enjoy the most.
I studied political science years ago and recently I’ve been working in the field of social projects, human rights and citizen security.
I feel passionate about different things but I think it’s hard for me to focus on just one or being consistent. Within those things there’s astrology, fashion, photography, films, literature, philosophy and cooking.
Interview by Andrea Koll
Hi Natalia!
What does the following quote make you feel or think:
“I contain multitudes.”
“I contain multitudes.”
This quote gives me a sense of strength. I think it does not only talk about being multiple things at the same time, but also about having the strength of a multitude on the inside.
was There a moment it recently that made you think of the power of words?
perhaps during a conversation or a particular question?
perhaps during a conversation or a particular question?
I’ve been thinking lately about Jacques Lacan’s idea of language being the same as the body. In one of his teachings, he says “Speech is in fact a gift of language, and language is not immaterial. It is a subtle body, but body it is.” I came to this thought after talking about my own somatization of pain with my psychoanalyst. I think language is in fact material, it doesn’t only create a reality but also allows you to understand and give meaning to your reality. And also, language has an impact on your body, your feelings, your wellbeing. If you have a narrow language, you’ll have a narrow reality. And if you can’t get around your emotions with words, or if you interpret them with inaccuracy, it will affect your whole being and your way of living life. It is now clear to me that words are powerful and vital.
What does the sight of a blank page make you feel? Elaborate, please. :-)
I hadn’t thought about this before. I think it gives me a feeling of possibility. I’ve been writing recently and starting (facing the blank page) is always scary and exciting. More exciting than scary, usually.
Thinking of relationships and human interactions, what does a CLEAN SLATE mean to you?
I’m wondering if it’s actually possible to start again a relationship with someone with a clean slate. It seems to me that it’s not. Maybe what you can do is forgive or, even more importantly, understand; and thus, start from a different place. Perhaps the slate wouldn’t be clean, but you could make space for a new drawing.
Regarding memories and cultural practices, what do you make of the blank/erased slate in terms of how our societies move forward or progress?
I think you and I, you as a German and me as a Colombian, are witnesses of how societies can learn from their mistakes and move towards progress and no-repetition. This has happened without denying our history, but rather talking about it as much as necessary and creating different narratives or common senses around it. I think this is the only way societies heal and move forward: through memory
Unfamiliar worlds.
CAN YOU THINK OF A PARTICULAR MOMENT WHEN YOU WERE FORCED TO START NEW?
I can only think of transition periods. I don’t think I’ve ever been forced to start new, but I have been forced to adapt to new life scenarios that made me feel lost and lonely. Going from college to the labor world was very hard for me and I only saw the impact of that many years later. My life changed drastically and I never really prepared for that. Probably the hardest part about it was realizing I lost most of my free time. I value time a lot.
IS THERE ANOTHER MOMENT WHERE YOU YOURSELF DECIDED TO START ANEW AND REINVENT YOURSELF? WHAT KIND OF ACTION DID YOU TAKE TO PURSUE THAT?
Coming out as a lesbian to my family felt like a re-invention of myself. It felt like an opportunity to walk through a different path, one I hadn’t experienced before and wanted to so badly, so deeply and passionately. I was still the same person, but there was within me a different relationship with freedom and desire.
THROUGH WHICH SITUATIONS IN YOUR LIFE DO YOU THINK HAVE YOU GROWN THE MOST? ANY PARTICULAR SITUATIONS THAT HAVE TAUGHT YOU IMPORTANT LESSONS?
I would say that my relationship with my father has shaped me in profound ways and without it I wouldn’t be the person I am, for good and bad. I have grown from it because it has caused me so much pain and happiness at the same time, that it has never ceased to amaze me. I have never, in my whole life, stopped asking myself questions about it. I think you can only grow from situations that make you question things about yourself and the world.
HAVE YOU LISTENED TO ANY PARTICULAR MUSIC RECENTLY THAT MADE YOU FEEL DIFFERENT IN ANY WAY? GAVE YOU A NEW OUTLOOK ON A CERTAIN ISSUE OR YOURSELF?
I was listening to Bag Lady by Erykah Badu recently and realized it’s a song I always come back to whenever I feel lost or disappointed about myself. It’s a song about leaving emotional baggage behind and how that baggage stops you from getting what you want. In some way, it invites you to start anew, like we were discussing before. It makes me feel a little bit more hopeful.
Perspective.
CAN YOU THINK OF A RECENT INTERACTION, THAT MADE YOU QUESTION YOUR WAY OF SEEING?
I wrote a letter to someone I loved and she wrote back and I could see very clearly how different we experienced our relationship. We shared the same experiences but we both read them so differently that it was very shocking to me. I also realized how hard it is for me to understand difference. I always think others see things the same way I do, and whenever I encounter myself with difference, I almost don't believe it. But I should, it shouldn’t be so shocking. It’s part of life and being human.
IS THERE ANY ARTICLE OR LITERATURE IN PARTICULAR THAT YOU’VE READ RECENTLY THAT MADE YOU QUESTION YOUR PERSPECTIVE?
Yes! A few weeks ago, I read an article about Simone Weil which blew me away. It was about love and attention, which is basically the same thing for her. I had never thought of love in that way, as something you just receive without expecting, something that penetrates you only when you’re empty enough to receive it. Love as attention in its fullest, something completely out of yourself. Reading her brought me so much happiness, I was so grateful.
WHAT ARE WAYS OF SEEING FOR YOU?
It’s like having different lenses for reading life itself.
DO YOU ACTIVELY NURTURE YOUR WAYS OF SEEING? IF SO, HOW?
This is such a beautiful question. I think I try to, maybe what has helped me the most in doing so is astrology. Studying signs is studying ways of being. Every sign is unique and valuable and powerful in its singularity. Reading people I love through those lenses has helped me being more sympathetic and compassionate. Something I struggle with is my ego and making everything about myself. Astrology keeps me out of myself and hence, it brings me closer to everything else, it expands me.
SO, I KNOW YOU’RE A POLITICAL SCIENTIST. WHAT DO YOU THINK THE NEW GOVERNMENT MEANS FOR COLOMBIA? WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS AS A POLITICAL SCIENTIST AND WHAT DO YOU FEEL PERSONALLY WHEN FOLLOWING THE MEDIA COVERAGE?
It is a fact that Colombia has changed forever. I had never seen in my life so much expectation and so much interest in politics. It has been very surprising, not only because the left is now the ruler (which had never happened before), but also because I don’t see the opposition as scared as I thought it was going to be, and that makes me feel hopeful about the future. I don’t see fear in people, I see pure expectation. Said expectation is just possibility. It could go wrong as much as it could go very right. I see the new government as a very powerful opportunity to start a new history out of our shared violence.
I also don’t think this government has the power to change everything, and I don’t think it’s necessary to change everything, but if we advance towards peace and a public education agenda, I would be satisfied.
I also don’t think this government has the power to change everything, and I don’t think it’s necessary to change everything, but if we advance towards peace and a public education agenda, I would be satisfied.
I ALSO KNOW YOU MOVED TO BOGOTÁ FOR A WHILE RECENTLY AND THEN DECIDED TO MOVE BACK TO YOUR HOMETOWN CALI. DID YOU PERCEIVE THE CITY DIFFERENTLY AFTER HAVING LIVED SOMEWHERE ELSE FOR A WHILE?
I perceived Cali so differently. The number of trees, the music in the streets, the people who don’t ever shut up, the good food were things I hadn’t realized weren’t universal until I moved somewhere else. I also could see how a city without a government looks, and it was sad to see. Cali is radically different from Bogotá; I don’t even think they are comparable in any way. I’m happy of being here, but there are certain things I can’t stand now that I know that they don’t exist in other cities.
ANY READING RECOMMENDATIONS OR LAST WORDS? :)
I love you so fucking much and thank you for your questions.
[this interview was conducted on the 9th of august 2022, the photos of natalia were taken JUST OUTSIDE the Museo La Tertulia in Cali, COlombia in June 2022]
Outside of Museo La Tertulia, Cali, Colombia