Ex Libris, 2023. Digital reproductions of marbled end sheets, perfect bound in antique marbled paper.

The first iteration of this project was created in 2018 for a course at Pomona College, “Self-Publishing for Artists.” The assignment was to explore the college consortium’s library and create a book inspired by Marc Fischer/Public Collector’s series of zines Library Excavations. The idea here was that students could explore books, magazines, atlases, microfiche and any other materials they could access and then curate content around a theme. I had been exploring bookbinding at the time and found myself gravitating towards the older, more ornate leather-bound books that populated the stacks. When I cracked them open I discovered a rainbow of decorative marbled end sheets. I took photos of as many as I could find and then compiled the best examples into a small zine.

The following year I actually learned how to create marbled paper and I decided to expand the project. At the time I was working for an art gallery with a small but robust library that I also mined for marbled pages to photograph. Then between 2020-2023 I worked at the International Printing Museum, which not only had a library but regularly acquired new books, many of which had marbled end sheets that I could add to my catalogue.

In 2023 I decided this second iteration of the project felt complete when I left the Museum. There were now three sections in the book: college, gallery, museum. It was not just a survey of marbled paper but also an abstract diary, showing the progression of my career through the art world.