Art Exhibition: Kristina McComb

March/April 2021 Online Exhibition

 

An Archive of Time: A Life Lived in the Boston Athenæum

Worn and weathered through age and use, every detail tells a story of the book’s history. "An Archive of Time: A Life Lived in the Boston Athenæum" explores the open-shelf collection in the Boston Athenæum - bringing attention to the tears, folds, broken spines, and cobwebs that map the surfaces of the books. This project highlights and celebrates these details instead of shunning them as imperfections.

Standing in the stacks, there is a sense of being surrounded by the impact of everyone who has ever been influenced by these books. There is evidence of those who have left their mark on the books, and who have likewise had the books influence them. This photographic archive freezes the library as it exists currently, creating a new timeline apart from the original. Similar to facsimiles of books created for accessibility and preservation and how the original material and the facsimile will continue to age and change, but in different ways and at different rates. – Kristina McComb

 

Additional images from the series can be found on Kristina McComb's website. 

Kristina McComb is represented by Abigail Ogilvy Gallery in Boston. 
Direct inquiries to kaylee@abigailogilvy.com.

 

Content may not be reproduced, transmitted or distributed without the express prior written consent of the artist.

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