Live social data is translated into a three-dimensional object that evolves over time, collapsing the distance between digital identity and physical artifact.

Crystallized operates as a real-time visualization of a Facebook profile, translating timelines, friendships, and likes into a form that can be held, explored, and fabricated. Social data is reframed not as a scrolling feed, but as an object—approachable, playful, and spatial. The project draws inspiration from the simplicity of 1970s pet rocks, where personality and meaning emerged through minimal gestures rather than complexity.

The exterior shell is composed of points representing individual friends selected by the user. Each point’s position is determined by mutual connections, forming a clustered surface that reflects the structure of a personal network. Inside, a crystalline core represents the collective likes of a user’s friends, generating a dense interior landscape that grows more complex as activity accumulates.

The form can be split open like a geode, allowing interior and exterior conditions to be read together. Over time, as networks become more active, the crystal thickens and multiplies, recording change through accretion rather than replacement. Growth is captured as density, layering, and shared behavior.

Developed in collaboration with The Creators Project and Vice Media, Crystallized extends beyond visualization into fabrication. The same live data used to generate the digital form can be translated directly into a three-dimensional print, positioning users as co-creators of their own data objects.

By turning social information into something that can be opened, printed, and owned, Crystallized renders invisible networks tangible. The project invites reflection on how relationships form and solidify—transforming online connection into a physical record that is personal, temporal, and unexpectedly intimate.