Leaders, Dreamers & Rebels

Leaders, Dreamers & Rebels was commissioned by the Los Angeles Times for the LA Times Festival of Books, held at the University of Southern California in April 2014.

Invited to create a sculpture over the course of two days, I chose to challenge myself with a ten-foot spiraling tower of books. I wanted the piece to feel alive, not simply a static installation, but a work that captured the energy, urgency, and layered conversations of the festival itself.

Throughout the weekend, I worked publicly with a drill press surrounded by mounds of discarded books, carefully boring through their centers and threading them onto a custom metal armature. Many of the books had been destined for pulping, to be shredded and recycled into mulch. For a book lover, the process can feel almost brutal. That tension became part of the performance.

The act of drilling drew powerful reactions. Some viewers were startled. Others were delighted by the sculpture’s whimsical ascent. Conversations unfolded organically; about preservation, transformation, authorship, and renewal. Interestingly, librarians and professors were among the most supportive voices, even offering surplus volumes for future projects, deeply moved by the idea of giving books a second life through art.

Leaders, Dreamers & Rebels is currently on view at the La Pintoresca Library in Pasadena.