Crystals in Art

Based on an exhibition organized by Joachim Pissarro and curator of contemporary art at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Lauren Haynes, Crystals in Art: Ancient to Today explores the complex and varied connections between crystal and art throughout the world. Included are both ancient artifacts—such as engraved gems, figurines, and vases—and works from contemporary artists around the world that explore the power of crystal in art by drawing on its form, properties, and mysterious qualities. Featuring more than sixty-five works from ancient Egypt and Greece, through to Rome, China, India, Japan, the Middle East, the Americas, and beyond, this book invites readers to discover how the power of crystal transcends the boundaries of time and space.

Taken together, all of these objects illustrate how crystal has bridged the gap between things we can see and things we can’t: science and art, fact and faith, medicine and magic—the visible and the invisible.

Published in collaboration with Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and University of Arkansas School of Art.