Obsolete Treasures

When my grandmother moved into a retirement home, she left behind a house filled with memories—including a vast collection of pewter plates and tankards, once treasured but now deemed worthless. With pewter collections falling out of fashion, their value was reduced to mere material worth, stripped of their craftsmanship and sentiment. In my practice, I often work with metal casting, drawn to the idea that metal is never truly lost—it can always be melted down and reshaped. For this piece, I’ve cast a plate, fork, and knife from my grandparents’ pewter, transforming forgotten heirlooms into objects that bridge past and present. The porous structure revealed through casting symbolizes the fragility of memory and the shifting nature of value.