Geode #8
My friend Consuelo just took an amazing photo of geode #8 at Daily Dose. When we took our fancy photos last week, we didn’t have a stand to take photos in the dark lit cafe so we got this lovely iPhone flash/instagram action going on in this one. Just wanted to post this more detailed photo up to show off the teeny tiny pieces I made in this one.
Geode #8, Brighter Details
Geodes 6, 7, and 8
Late last week I installed three new geodes in one location. They live at The Daily Dose, a little gem of a cafe in the Arts District of downtown LA. Sarkis, the owner, saw my geodes on Facebook and asked if I would add some to the cafe. Hell yes I will!
These three geodes are the most difficult I’ve done by far. They took me over three weeks to create, which is average for three geodes, but the amount of time per day put in was tripled. Each piece was precious since I knew they would be in a place where customers would be sitting for long periods of time, able to see every flaw.
Geodes number 7 and 8 were the challenging ones, the molds crumbled when I took them out. Putting them back together was a puzzle piece nightmare. I had to make both their casts twice because I made the glue mixture too strong and couldn’t get them off the molds. Also, while gluing the pieces in, I was constantly stressed and checking whether the folded nooks and crannies of the pieces would be too filled or if the whole piece was maleable enough for when I placed them in.
So much time and stress and these pieces were successfully created. I can’t believe they fit and I don’t know how big a puddle on the ground I would have melted into if it they didn’t.
Geodes 6 and 7
Geode #6
Installation of Geode #7
Installation of Geode #7
Geode #7
Geode #7, Closeup
Geode #8 Installation
Geode #8, It fits!
Geode #8 Closeup
Geode #8
Geode #8, In the Cafe
Test Geode
For a long while I’ve known that I needed to figure out how to create geodes to fit into real cracks. I can’t depend on finding perfect pipes and missing bricks forever and I really can’t imagine spending hours longer gluing pieces directly into holes in the middle of the night. I’ve been scheming up this process that I’ve confirmed today—works!
Below is an image of a tester I made in our house. I wanted to do it inside so I could have control over the situation if anything didn’t work or needed extra time and care. The process includes making a mold of the crack, creating a cast of the mold with gauze-like cloth and homemade “size”, and following the rest of my old steps to completion. The inner shapes here are technically too large, I just used some extra pieces I had that would at least fit.
I rounded out this geode with a glossy red spray paint. I like it for our house because it kind of matches, but it doesn’t quite pop enough for the outside world. I am still on the hunt for metallics in other colors.
Test Geode in Crack
What IS a Geode?
My sister had a brilliant idea today. We’ve been noticing not everyone knows what a geode is or how exactly to pronounce it. We also noticed that many people do know what they are, they just don’t know they know what they are. The idea was to post about what geodes actually are to help people see where this project has evolved from. Thanks for the help Wikipedia! (sorry for the not great quality of the photos, I liked these examples most)
Geodes (Greek γεώδης – ge-ōdēs, “earthlike”) are geological secondary sedimentary structures which occur in sedimentary and certain volcanic rocks. Geodes are essentially spherical masses of mineral matter that were deposited syngenetically within the rock formations they are found in. Geodes have a chalcedony shell containing various minerals, usually quartz. Geodes differ from vugs in that they were formed as a separate entity from the surrounding rock, whereas vugs are voids or cavities within a rock formation. Geodes also differ from “nodules” in that a nodule is a mass of mineral matter that has accreted around the nodule nucleous. Both structures had the minerals contained within deposited from groundwater or hydrothermal processes. The exterior of most geodes generally consists of chalcedony, a cryptocrystalline form of quartz. Inside the chalcedony shell many minerals have been found such as calcite, pyrite, kaolinite, sphalerite, millerite, barite, dolomite, limonite, smithsonite and quartz, which is by far the most common and abundant mineral found in geodes. Geodes are found mostly in basaltic lavas and limestones. The Warsaw Formation in the Keokuk region near the area where Missouri, Iowa, and Illinois join contains abundant geodes.
Formation
Geodes can form in any cavity, but the term is usually reserved for more or less rounded formations in igneous and sedimentary rocks, while the more general term “vug” is applied to cavities in fissures and veins. They can form in gas bubbles in igneous rocks, such as vesicles in basaltic lavas, or as in the American Midwest, rounded cavities in sedimentary formations. After rock around the cavity hardens, dissolved silicates and/or carbonates are deposited on the inside surface. Over time, this slow feed of mineral constituents from groundwater or hydrothermal solutions allows crystals to form inside the hollow chamber. Bedrock containing geodes eventually weathers and decomposes, leaving them present at the surface if they are composed of resistant material such as quartz.
Quartz Geode
Amethyst Geode
Amethyst Geode 2
Geode #5, Venice CA
My 5th geode has just been installed. This sort of replaces my 2nd geode that was recently stolen out of its pipe, hopefully this one lasts longer (it’s going to be hard to rip this sucker out, wink). Technically this one’s color is “brass” but it looks a lot like the “gold”, I’ll be switching up the colors of these soon.
The location of this new geode is at 1661 Abbot Kinney Boulevard in Venice CA, my first geode on the west side. Happy new year!
Gedoe #5, Venice CA
Geode #5, Venice CA
Geode #5, Venice CA
Geode #3, Deterioration
There were heavy rains (which means a heavy sprinkling in LA) in December. The third geode I created, in the corner of a building on Spring between 7th and 8th, has started to fall apart and deteriorate. The images below show how parts of it have fallen off onto the sidewalk and left some gaping holes in the geode construction.
Now this is something I was prepared for and am happy about. I know these are all “temporary” installations because of people and weather. I realized after two geodes were stolen that I can’t really emotionally deal with the people problem, but I can deal with the weather problem. Erosion is so cool, it’s a natural response to nature and the effects I think are still beautiful. Paper does unfortunately erode incredibly quick so I do plan on starting to explore other materials. I’d also like to find a way to combat the “people problem”, but I’m not sure I want to disclose that yet. To be continued…
Geode 03 Deterioration
Geode 03 Deterioration
