As much of the United States continues to experience an insanely cold winter, many artists are making the most of it by documenting spectacular icicles dripping from a frozen lighthouse or by transforming boiling water into a cloud of tiny ice crystals.
Environmental artist Nicole Dextras regularly uses ice as her medium to create unique sculptures where various textures and fabrics are set within thick blocks. IceShifts is an ongoing collection of smaller projects in which Dextras suspends items including shirts, pants, socks, and dresses in frozen water and photographs the deconstructed garments in surrounding landscapes.
There is something incredibly spooky about how the pieces of clothing stand upright without an owner. Dextras says, “Although frozen in time, the garments appear to dance, simultaneously forming and deforming, like unmasked shape shifters.” The temporary installations stand only as long as the ice holds, and the artist believes the ephemeral nature of each piece is meant to raise an awareness of the connections between humans and the environment.
