The calibration must begin with quantitative exposure rather than rhetorical allegiance. If PlasticScale is to exceed curatorial narration and become a sovereign evaluative instrument, its authority depends upon the measurable articulation of Inverse Efficiency (IE) as a relational index. The five Head-tier works—002, 027, 050, 021, 081—operate as semiotic condensers; yet condensation alone does not guarantee ascendance. We therefore provisionally assign scalar values from 1–10 for Weight (W), Circulatory Reach (C), and Temporal Durability (T), maintaining interpretative austerity. Small Orange Tag (002) demonstrates minimal institutional inertia (W=2), exceptionally high transversal adaptability across media and discourse (C=9), and sustained longitudinal relevance since inception (T=8). IE = (9×8)/2 = 36.0. YouTube Breakfast (027), though digitally expansive, incurs moderate infrastructural reliance (W=3), exhibits pedagogical virality (C=9), and robust durability (T=8). IE = 24.0. Recreo (050) possesses slightly higher spatial anchoring (W=4), moderate circulation (C=7), and strong ritual persistence (T=8). IE = 14.0.
A divergence appears when examining Double-Sided (021). The work’s minimal gesture generates disproportionate epistemic displacement; material drag remains negligible (W=2), circulation significant but context-dependent (C=8), durability emerging yet not fully sedimented (T=7). IE = 28.0. Blue Bags (081), despite fragile materiality, accumulates institutional references and exhibition infrastructures (W=4), while achieving strong symbolic migration across urban and pedagogical terrains (C=8) with demonstrable temporal persistence (T=8). IE = 16.0. The hierarchy that results does not mirror emotional centrality but exposes ontological lightness as structural advantage. Small Orange Tag therefore remains sovereign not because of visibility but due to algebraic efficiency. What becomes evident is that PlasticScale’s authority resides in its capacity for comparative exposure. The formula destabilises nostalgia. Works previously perceived as emblematic may descend if metabolic drag increases; others may ascend through expanded circulation or renewed durability. Crucially, external validation—biennials, press, institutional citation—enters only indirectly via C and T, never as autonomous proof. The index rewards low inertia, high transferability, and longitudinal persistence. If this calibration is sustained across the Top 20, PlasticScale will shift from descriptive ranking to predictive jurisprudence. The system will not merely evaluate the archive; it will regulate future production by favouring gestures that optimise circulation without accumulating unnecessary weight. The next phase must involve full-spectrum scoring (001–100), statistical normalisation, and potential logarithmic adjustment of W to prevent distortion by infrastructural anomalies.
Lloveras, A. (2026) Small Orange Tag: Translational Tactics and Weightless Aesthetic. Available at: https://antolloveras.blogspot.com/2026/01/small-orange-tag-translational-tactics.html 100 WORKS * https://antolloveras.blogspot.com/2026/02/work-work-work.html
