Crystalized Books

Arnold creates these changes over condensed time frames through catalyzed natural processes, such as crystal growth, forced oxidation, or sun-bleaching, in an effort to see objects in a new way, with a new history. For her ‘Crystalized Books’ series she grows crystals on a selection of books. The books, now frozen with heavy crystal growth, become artifacts or geologic specimens imbued with the history of time, use, and nostalgia. The crystal growth highlights or creates the aesthetics of these once-utilitarian objects that are entering the world of obsolescence, as well as acts to suggest past and future narratives laden with memory, wonder, and the interminable progression of time, both geologic and on a smaller, more relatable scale.

All images © Alexis Arnold