“Today, what unknown spaces are there? I believe that they are those of total intimacy.”1
—Daniel Boudinet
Soon after the end of a long-term relationship, I had dinner plans in my hometown of Montreal with Mark, an artist and art historian I had been told I should meet. At the restaurant we quickly bonded over a shared interest in queer forms of intimacy, kinship, and affect. He was beautiful, with sparkling eyes and a warm smile. Afterward, he invited me back to his place and we had a wonderful night together. The next morning, I was to take the bus to Ottawa to spend the day at the National Gallery of Canada. It was very difficult to pull myself away from Mark; our connection felt pregnant with possibility, and it was clear we would have a place in each other’s lives, even if the details remained fuzzy. In Ottawa,...