the lower body 313«Wet with Paint»- dedicated to so-and-so, so-and-so and so-and-so
reach out your hands
tear off your face
measure its depth
increase its strength
rule out its filth
master its truth
shorten its length
adjust its width
reject its worth
then put it back on
(handle with care)
fix its expression
aim it at nothingness (that is, all mortal beings)
and be so kind as to stick out your tongue
to feel if your face is still there
and whether or not it is there
right where it is right then
please place your palms together
and you will certainly feel
your own devout and valiant expression
like a signboard wet with paint
on which everyone wants
to leave a pawprint
To retain the original’s formal features, I have taken more translatory
license than usual and rendered ᑺ ‘wetness’ or ‘dampness’ as filth,
ሎᑺ ‘yardstick’ or ‘measure’ as truth and 亢ᑺ ‘style’ or ‘proud bear-
ing’ as worth.
After reach out your hands, the perfect cliché to announce a sentimen-
tal vision of love or charity, tear off your face is of shocking brutality. The
image of one’s presentation to the world as a mask leads into issues
of identity. Is the face-mask still there? Can one see oneself? Has the
mask taken over? Can one be oneself? Just like «Man Throwing Up»,
«Wet with Paint» has a powerful, slightly mystifying ending. The final
scene bespeaks disgust at being touched by others wanting to leave
their mark, whether literal or figurative.