In the spring of 2021, the ESMAD (Mobile Anti-Disturbance Squad) used “less-lethal” weapons to purposefully inflict debilitating eye injuries on more than one hundred peaceful protestors, often resulting in the complete loss of sight in their injured eyes. The title, Only Good for Crying, is taken from a doctor’s frank assessment of one victim’s eye. Her gruesome injury was the result of a shotgun blast of “less-lethal” plastic birdshot.

The clear acrylic pages are laser-engraved with drawings and text. Sitting on a table, Only Good for Crying resembles a block of ice. The transparency invites the viewer to look deep into the book, with the ability to see multiple pages and layers at the same time. Refracted light reveals cavities trapped within the block, like bubbles rising in a frozen pond. These empty spots appear where letters in the text used to be, hollowed out violently, like bullet holes where eyes used to be. On one side of the book, a dimensional drawing comprises nine layers, each set at a different depth, simultaneously evoking elements ranging in scale from microscopic (nerves and capillaries) to cosmic (galaxies and the universe itself). On the other side, a volumetric cloud of unreadable text collapses in upon itself, suggesting the confusion and difficulty with which the victims navigate the world after their injuries, now challenged with previously simple tasks like reading text. When the page is turned, the text becomes readable, at the same time peeling a layer away from the volumetric drawing. The more pages that are turned, the more elements disappear, stripping away complexity, nuance, and detail, in the same way that the victims are robbed of their ability to fully experience the visual world.

Only Good for Crying is the third book in Eliana’s series exploring the intractable challenges facing Colombia, her native country. It records the brutal tactics used by the militarized Colombian police forces in suppressing peaceful citizen protests.

Accompanied by a copy of the book’s text, including a braille transcription. All text engraved in Atkinson Hyperlegible font. Can be displayed with the included LED light strip.