The object that I have chosen for this blog post is a piece of world war 2 trench art that was handmade by my great grandfather’s brother. I was unable to bring these pieces of trench art to college with me, so I asked my family members to take the best photos they could to represent this object. My object is about 3-4 inches in diameter and about the same height as well. It takes the form of a short, hollow, cylindrical shape representing an ash tray of sorts. The general cylinder lies atop a thinner, but wider circular base that has many small holes punched into it. On the general cylinder shape, there are many holes punched into it, creating straight lines, arrow-like slanted lines, and even letters. These letters spell out the name of my great grandfathers brother, “B.J. SIMEONE”.

They also spell out the word, “ENGLAND,” as well as the number, “1944”. Finally, the last letters punched into the cylinder spell out the words, “U.S. NAVY”.

Towards the center of the object lies another hollow cylindrical shape that is about 1 inch in diameter and 2-3 inches in height. Towards the top of this cylinder lies two small holes directly across from each other. On the rim of the large cylinder lies a bent, coin-like shape that seems to be welded onto the cylinder rim. On the coin, there is a bird-like image and some letters that are hard to make out. This coin seems to be made of a copper-like material with a small layer of dust covering the surface of it. The cylindrical shape seems to be made of a metal-like material and is brown in color. There are several signs of both white and green patinas throughout my object as well. The object smells somewhat like metal as well.

On the bottom of my object, there are multiple engraved circles surrounding the outer edge and the very middle. There are also multiple engraved numbers and letters, none forming coherent words.

This is a picture of my great grandfathers brother. I am still unsure of his full name and only know minuscule details about him. However, I was able to obtain some information about my great grandfather that helped me figure out some information about B.J. Simeone. My family found these art pieces in our basement while cleaning out some older holiday decorations. The house that we live in used to belong to my great grandmother, Mary Simeone. Fun fact: we still get our water bills addressed to her in the mail! Anyways, Mary and her husband, Urbano Simeone, lived in this house before my family. The house used to be a one story ranch house, with horse stables and wells all throughout the property. My great grandfather, aka Urbano, planted a long row of berry trees along the driveway, and used to make wine in the cellar located in our basement. We even have these soaked wine barrels to this day! We think that Urbano and his family back in Italy used to own their own wine vineyard and he continued on the business here in the United States. He was originally born in Filetto, Italy on July 10th, 1914. He became a registered U.S. citizen after escaping from the rule of Benito Mussolini. From this information I can assume that his brother, B.J. was also born in Filetto, Italy and moved to the U.S. around the same time. In October of 1940, Urbano was drafted into the United States Navy to fight in the second world war, as well as his brother. B.J. was stationed in England in 1944 and had a hobby of creating trench art. This ashtray was one of the pieces he made, along with the picture frame holding his image and even a little wheelbarrow, which I will attach at the end of this post. All of his artwork was created using scraps found on the battlefield, like empty bullet shells. That would explain the serial numbers on the bottom of the ashtray, although I do not know enough about bullets to figure out the exact model. Therefore, the ashtray is made up of many different sized bullets that were welded together in the trenches. Also, the coin on the rim of the ashtray, upon further research, is called a UK Farthing coin and the small bird is a wren to represent one of the smallest birds in Britain. They are worth about $3.00 today, depending on the year located on the coin. Also, during 1944, England was a very active site for the war. Food and clothing were very sparse and rationed among the people. Bombings were very frequent and caused mass death and destruction throughout England. Therefore, I think my great grandfather and his brother must have had a very hard life while stationed in England and I find it extremely impressive that B.J. was able to create these amazing pieces of art.

After the war, these trench art pieces were passed onto Urbano when B.J. died, then passed onto Mary after Urbano died, and when she died, we inherited the house as well as these works. I also love these objects because the love for art is really strong on my fathers side of the family, and seeing these trench art pieces only verified that, and made me feel even closer to my ancestors.

Citations:

EmmaP. “The Wren on the Farthing.” Wash Your Language, 13 Oct. 2019, https://washyourlanguage.com/the-wren-on-the-farthing/#:~:text=The%20smallest%20of%20pre%2Ddecimal,a%20much%20more%20symbolic%20bird.

Morano, Johanna. Interview. 2023.

“We’re Giving You Access to Your History.” Join Ancestry, http://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/193959668:2238?tid=&pid=&queryId=256bccedfc2ea1f52ba06b30c83ca82a&_phsrc=hgy48&_phstart=successSource.

The object I chose to trace is a wooden mortar pilon from Puerto Rico that was my great-great-grandmother’s, Felicidad Rodriguez Baez. Pilons are handmade traditional kitchen item in Puerto Rico. It is used for a variety of purposes but it is most commonly used to mash garlic into powder.  Garlic is extremely popular in traditional Puerto Rican cooking and they use the pilon to prepare garlic for meal preparation by smashing it, turning it into a paste like substance. Many people use this kitchen tool to make mofongo which is a traditional Puerto Rico dish that is made up of green plantains and chicharrón (crunchy pork skin). While I have never had mofongo, my dad tells me it is a savory dish with a subtle sweet flavor from the plantains. 

My great-great-grandmother, Felicidad Rodriguez Baez, bought this item in her youth from a craftsman Merchant at the market in Dorado, a beach near my great-great-grandmother’s house. She had many pilons at her house but this one, in particular, caught her eye because of the artistic markings.  This pilon, in particular, she used throughout her life and prepared many meals with it. When my great-grandmother, Carmen Baez was engaged, Felicidad gave it to her as a gift to start her new life with her husband, my great-grandfather Ignacio Cruz. Same as her mother, she used this very pilon to make these same traditional dishes.  

My great-great-grandmother, Felicidad Rodriguez Baez, and her husband Modesto Baez wanted to move to America for a better opportunity. While Carmen stayed in Puerto Rico her daughter, my grandmother, Sandra Coffey moved with her grandparents when she was twenty years old. Her mother, Carmen,  gave her the gift of the pilon to bring with her to America.

My grandmother, Sandra, and her grandparents moved to America and settled in St. Louis, Missouri. Even though my grandmother, Sandra, visited her mother frequently, she was homesick for her mother’s cooking in America. Cooking, for my grandmother, was a bridge between her Puerto Rican culture and American cuisine. As she learned to make American dishes she would always incorporate a Spanish twist. For example, she would make meatballs but use the pilon to grind her fresh herbs into seasonings. After my grandmother was married she had my dad, Greg Benlien. He tells me that he has so many memories of his mom and him talking in the kitchen as she would make dinner with the pilon. My dad was always very close with his mom, Sandra, so when he turned ten years old he started to express an interest in cooking. My grandma was so thrilled that she would spend every Sunday cooking with my dad and teaching him traditional meals she learned from her mother back in Puerto Rico. 

When my dad was eighteen years old,  he was working at CPI and there was a call from the New York office with a problem. The caller on the other line was my mom, Regina Bruno. As they fixed the problem that should have only taken five minutes to fix, they sat on the phone for hours talking. My parents had a long-distance friendship but a year later my dad came to visit my mom in New York. They began to date and four years later they got engaged. When my dad was packing up and leaving St. Louis, my grandmother gave him the pilon to bring with him to New York. After my parents got married a year later they had me. Ever since I could remember this pilon was an active kitchen tool in my house. When I was just four years old I learned how to mash garlic with it just like my great-great-grandmother did. Today, the pilon sits by my oven and I try to invent new ways to use the pilon in new dishes I come up with. I hope I can pass this important family heirloom to my children one day and tell them the story of this pilon.

Work Cited

Benlien, Gregory. Interview. 2023

Coffey, Sandra. Interview. 2023

What I understand about this object is this:

My great-grandfather, George Dannecker, was randomly part of a group of young men that became the first Navy SEALs. They weren’t called Navy SEALs yet, but they were all young, impressionable, and frankly disposable. They became the men who dove underwater to deconstruct bombs before they could explode. They were called the UDT, “underwater demolition team,” later the SEALs. Their training took place in Hawaii and then they were on boats, I’m not sure exactly where. 

Sticking a bunch of young men on a boat in the middle of the ocean ensures one thing: tomfoolery. George had actually lied to join the navy, so he was significantly younger than the other men, standing at a cool seventeen years. Seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty year old boys will always find a way to play games. 

And so they played. The game of choice turned out to be ping pong. My great-grandfather turned out to be pretty good at it. He was good enough, in fact, to be crowned a “Ping Pong Doubles Champion” on October 23rd, 1944. Lucky for me and my research, this date is inscribed right on the trophy, which is shaped like a ping pong racket. His name is also inscribed in the metal, proving the original ownership. 

The trophy is made of scrap metal from shell casings. 533, the numbers inscribed front and center on the trophy, indicates either the number of his ship or his unit. “CB,” which is inscribed above the numbers, or “seabees,” stands for construction battalion. “MU,” which sits below the numbers, is for “munitions unit.” 

When I asked my father, the current owner of the trophy, what “munitions unit” meant, he texted back, simply, “go boom.”

I had the great fortune of knowing George for a lot of my life before he passed away in 2019. It took him a long time to be able to talk about his time in World War Two. In fact, he didn’t talk much about it at all. My cousins and I interviewed him for middle school projects, but that was about it. This trophy is one of the only tangible pieces of evidence I have seen that he was truly there, young, and maybe even having fun at some points. 

This trophy made it home from the war with him, which meant it eventually fell into the possession of his daughter, my Grammy. It’s been in my Dad’s office in my house for as long as I can remember. He said he took it from his mom’s house when he moved out, which would have been upwards of twenty-five years ago. 

The trophy itself is in fine shape. The black metal of the handle has rubbed off to reveal more silver, and I’m sure it has never seen a duster or any sort of cleaning supplies, but it has a sort of indestructible air to it. I picked it up and spun it in my hands long before I truly understood what it was or what an incredible history it has behind it. 

My Dad admired my great-grandfather in a way that I always noticed. George became a firefighter when he returned from war and started a family. My Dad is a retired fire chief. George tied flies and fly-fished his worries away. My Dad retreats to rivers and keeps George’s jars of rabbit hair and twine to do the same. As you can see in the picture, the trophy lives in my Dad’s home office, where he spends most of his days. He keeps it near him. 

The trophy does a lot of storytelling on its own, which is convenient for me, the researcher, but I’m positive there’s more to be uncovered. It’s touchy to think about telling too much of a story that George wasn’t telling himself, but something about the trophy feels lighter. It’s a 79 year old bragging right. Don’t worry, George, I’m showing everyone how good you were at doubles ping pong.

In the Sheneman family, the military tradition has thrived.

My grandfather was the second youngest of thirteen, and the last to still be born on their farm in rural Mecosta County, Michigan. With three sisters and one brother passing away in infancy, there were nine healthy young men in the Sheneman household–opportune for military drafts and service. 

• Earl Sheneman (1915-1949) Army, WWII

• James (Jim) Sheneman (1918-1973) Marines, WWII, South Pacific

• Glen Sheneman (1924-1996) Navy, Korean War (N. Pacific Aleutian Islands)

• Robert (Bob) Sheneman (1932-?) Army, Korean War

• Fred Sheneman (1934-?) Army, ?

• Neil Sheneman (1936-?) Army, ?

• Keith Sheneman (1937-?) Army, ?

• Bryce Sheneman (1938-2017) Air Force, Japan and Cold War

• Carl Sheneman (1940-) Army and Reserves

When my grandfather was young, around 10 years old in 1948, his father passed away and his mother remarried “the meanest man in Mecosta County,” undoubtedly inadvertently preparing the young men for their difficult and challenging futures.

His eldest brothers Earl and James (Jim) were drafted by the Army to serve in World War II. Jim later told my grandfather of his experiences of the horrors of war. He spoke of the military abandoning him in the South Pacific and “sipping air through a reed” covered in mud for over a week while enemy soldiers ran nearby.

The next four men continued the tradition. Glen served in the North Pacific, the Aleutian islands in the Northern Pacific during the Korean war. As a proud German family, and a surname that made it difficult to keep hidden, my grandfather had been beaten up and called a “kraut” during the life and death of the Second World War. Once, on my grandfather’s bus ride home from school, the bus driver kindly pulled over to offer a walking soldier a ride home, only to discover that it was Glen. My grandfather recounted that “no one ever made fun of him after that.” His brothers Robert (Bob) served in the Army in Korea and Fred, Neil, and Keith served in the Army as well. Their placements are relatively historically inaccessible to me.

The youngest two were the luckiest in their placement, in terms of immediate physical harm. My grandfather’s youngest brother Robert (Bob) worked in the “Motor Pool” (a mechanic) and spent most of his time in the reserves. My grandfather would warn my parents when visiting Bob’s house that he was a thief and if they checked under any of the furniture they would find “PROPERTY OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY” stamped on it because he had access to the paperwork. As the only child to complete his high school education, my grandfather perhaps thought it was his place to help discourage this behavior from his brothers, but ultimately conceded that it was just who they were. My grandfather, slightly older than Bob, stood out among the otherwise traditional military stories for young men from rural Michigan.

Between 1956 and 1964, my grandfather served in the United States Air Force ultimately earning the title of Staff Sergeant. The academically highest performing of the thirteen children in his farm household, he likely received high marks on entry-level examinations that kept him from being placed as a “grunt.” Instead, they taught him “diddy bop” (morse code) in basic training and sent him to Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost island, to intercept Soviet messages. 

For his journey, he was issued the object that I am studying by the military: a travel trunk.

This trunk was a Korean War-era United States of America Air Force issued Aluminum steamer trunk supplied by Kowa Industry, a Japanese company. Truly a representation of primary geographic interests in the preceding and following decades, it is only fitting that its history is deeply intertwined with the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and the Cold War through my grandfather. The base at which my grandfather was stationed with this trunk was the base that intercepted the message and informed the president of the successful Soviet launch of Sputnik.

There are markings around all faces of the trunk, with one large gash, indicative of its experience being used, and confirming its journey overseas.

The company Kowa Industry has a logo positioned directly below the key latch in the middle of the trunk, pictured below.

The logo reads “KOWA” with the small text beneath it “INDUSTRY; PAT. NO. 103697.103697-1” enclosed in a triangular shape with a flared bottom and three curves at the top, delineating what appears to be a volcanic mountaintop. There are small screws on either side of the word “KOWA” alluding to the metallic nature of the logo, also revealed by its reflectivity under light.

A paper on the side of the trunk without a handle, pictured below, reveals its ownership, location of departure, and its destination: “BRYCE SHENEMAN; HT PATTERSON AFB; OHIO” and in the right box labelled “DESTINATION AIRPORT”: “SUU”. Bryce Sheneman was my grandfather’s name, and his base of departure was the Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, which he only referred to as “Wright Pat.” His destination, SSU, was the military acronym for Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, California. The labels for each of the boxes appear as though they were printed with the paper, but the information personal to my grandfather appears added as if by a typewriter.

The tattered edges make some of the information elude me, but there is also information completely present that escapes my comprehension.

My grandfather traveled throughout Hokkaido, likely using this trunk, to connect with a woman he met there. Despite never directly confirming this, except according to his sister Vivian and his only other son Kurt, he was supposedly married to a woman during his time in Japan and had a son with her, named Bryce–the same name as my dad. Upon his death in 2017, my family discovered love letters they had written to each other and a photo of them together. However, due to family conflict and ties being severed with my uncle, these letters and photo are inaccessible to me. This photo, taken between 1956 and 1960 while he was in Japan, appears to depict my grandfather (right) wearing a wedding band. This band has not been recovered to my knowledge. The story I have always heard is that during his return to Ohio, trunk in tow, for the remainder of his service, he was deciding if he should bring them to the United States or return to Japan. However, according to rumor from his sister Vivian, due to an unfortunate train derailment, they tragically passed away, and within a few years my grandfather decided he no longer desired a military career and moved back to Grand Rapids, Michigan where he remained with my grandmother, step-grandmother, and then alone. When my father was young, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, my grandfather would teach him and his brother Japanese words, per their request. He used to teach them Japanese nursery rhymes, one of which my dad can still recount (and made for a fascinating experience on a bus of Japanese tourists in the Bahamas during my parent’s honeymoon). My father said that as he grew older, before the pictures and letters, he knew this story Vivian had told was true. When prompted how he knew so certainly, he asked me, “How did he know the nursery rhymes? His friends sure weren’t learning any.”

He served in Ohio until 1964. My grandfather possessed a “crypto” clearance, a security clearance higher than the general in charge of the base. The general at the base asked him what he wanted to be, seeing as they had no use for a spy and did not want to send an intelligent soldier to be one of the first few on the ground in Vietnam, and so my grandfather became a plane mechanic and engineer. The aluminum trunk remained with him there, even during the transportation of “alien” spacecraft from Roswell, New Mexico to the base.

Upon the completion of his service, he returned to Grand Rapids, Michigan where the trunk rested in his closet at my father’s childhood home where my grandfather would spend the rest of his life. It acted as storage still, only in an altered context to its previous travels. He would say it was, “just taking up space.” When my parents moved into their home, my childhood and lifelong home, in 1996, my grandfather offered it to my mother who happily accepted, and my grandfather was no doubt pleased to give it to her. Despite its industrial appearance and damage, my mother sought to repurpose it as storage for her sewing and craft materials. For the next few years and into my lifetime (2002-) it has been in my parents’ bedroom sitting in their closet, holding my mother’s crafting supplies. I had always thought it was my father’s as they share the name “Bryce Sheneman” and share the experience of serving in the Air Force (photo 1: my father in the 1980s near the Air Force Base in Fairbanks, Alaska, left; photo 2: my father and his mother upon his completion of basic training in the early 1980s).

Sometimes more accessible than others with the clutter a household with young children produces, the trunk has only recently been discussed more for its history and importance, especially following the passing of my grandfather. 

Now that the military tradition in my lineage has come to an abrupt halt, with my sister and I as well as my uncle’s children not serving, it is unclear who it will be passed along to. As per tradition, I suppose the eldest children get to make that determination. However, and perhaps only because I am the youngest and most invested in the history of this object, I am eager to break that tradition as well.

Citations

“Ditty Bopper.” The American Legion, 1 June 2016, https://www.legion.org/stories/my-time-uniform/ditty-bopper.

Kindy, Dave. “75 Years Ago, Roswell ‘Flying Saucer’ Report Sparked UFO Obsession.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 17 Oct. 2022, https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2022/07/08/roswell-flying-saucer-ufo/.

“Oct 4, 1957 CE: USSR Launches Sputnik.” National Geographic Society, https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/ussr-launches-sputnik.

Sheneman, Allyson. “Oral History of Bryce D. Sheneman Recounted by Son Bryce W. Sheneman.” 12 Feb. 2023.

Sheneman, Allyson. “Sheneman Family Tree.” Ancestry Family Tree, Genealogy & Family History Records, 12 Feb. 2023, https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/189111176/family?cfpid=242450233905&fpid=242450248756.

“Vintage Kowa Aluminum Steamer Trunk, circa 1940’s.” Vintage Furnishing , https://www.1stdibs.com/furniture/more-furniture-collectibles/home-accents/trunks-luggage/vintage-kowa-aluminum-steamer-trunk-circa-1940s/id-f_26950522/.

The item I have chosen to describe is a decorative iridescent rose, also known as a “galaxy rose” that my best friend gifted me for my 18th birthday in September.

This item’s height is just 0.5” short of being 10”  tall. When holding the object, the bottom of what appears to be the stem is angled downwards and 0.5” from this, “24K” is inscribed vertically measuring 0.5” as well. 

At around 4.5” from the bottom of what looks to be the stem (seeming to be made from thick plastic dipped in gold paint) is a protruding piece of the thin gold plastic. It measures almost an inch long and is angled upwards on the left side of the stem (based on the photograph) with 5 indentations equal spaces apart close to the tip. Attached to this extension is what appears to be one of the leaves of the stem, which seems to be made out of a very reflective and iridescent thin plastic. It is flimsy to the touch but bounces back to its original designed shape making it a firmer material than say a plastic bag. Measuring at around 1.75” long, this leaf-like plastic has many indentations with a curvy border, making it bumpy to the touch and mimicking the look of veins on leaves. Around 1.5” from this point there is another protruding piece with the iridescent plastic “leaf” attached to it, however now it is attached to the back of the stick where in between these two leaves is a small bend in the stem leaning towards the right. Moving up 0.75” is the third and final protruding piece of gold-dipped plastic with the leaf structure. The look and texture is identical to the other two however this one is attached to the front of the stick slightly tilted to the left. 

As we move about 4” up the “stem”, we reach the top end of the item where the stem extends outward forming a zig-zag type base or holder for what appears to be the rose. The material used to create this rose-like structure seems to be the same as the one the “leaves” were made out of based on the texture and iridescent look to them. The first pieces attached to the base are 4 rounded triangular shapes to mimic the sepal of the rose. Then, like a rose, these petal shaped pieces are slightly bent outward and have a slight wrinkle to them and are layered on top of each other, getting closer and closer as they reach the center. 

While this rose has a cheap feel to it, the iridescence of it is what truly makes this a very beautiful object that is nice to look at. Being propped up next to a window with the sunlight hitting it makes it look as if it is glowing or sparkling. This object holds a lot of significance as it not only represents one of my closest friend’s thoughtfulness but also holds a lot of beauty.

The object I’m choosing to showcase is my stuffed animal, Frosty. My parents gave him to me in January of 2003, when I was born. They bought him from a department store, but don’t remember which one. His tag, located on the bottom back of his body, has long since worn out, leaving behind a polyester gray loop. He is a snowman, with a large round body, small round head, hat with a pompom, two gloves, scarf, and two feet. Overall, he is 35” tall, 10.75″ wide with the arms spread out, and on average 3.75” deep.

Frosty’s head is approximately 14″ wide, 15” tall, and 3.5” deep. What used to be fuzzy white cotton skin has faded into a grayish white color, changed by dirt and aging. There are small patches of missing fabric on the hat, nose, and cheek, exposing the brown stitching underneath the cotton. The biggest patch is to the bottom right of his nose (from Frosty’s perspective). The nose is a thin piece of blue fabric, doubled over and formed into a triangle. A stitch line is visible on the bottom of the nose, running the full length and showing where the manufacturers sewed. The nose is stuck in an upward position, which prominently shows the stitching.

When I was a toddler, I was very sensory. I chewed on Frosty, which resulted in a big hole on the top right of his nose. Only the top layer of the fabric is broken, so the hole is still covered on the bottom. I also chewed on the white and blue fabric strips of the pompom, resulting in the ends being severely frayed.

His hat is made of blue fabric and has a rim slightly smaller than the nose. Turning Frosty around, the back of his head is fully covered by the hat, which goes down to the scarf around his neck. The hat is loosely placed on the head, attached only at the rim. This causes the hat to not look fully stuffed, becoming wrinkled. His eyes are made of glass, with a blue sclera and black pupil. Both glass eyes are scratched, making it look like he has a twinkle in his eye. Lastly, the mouth is a thin piece of blue yarn, threaded loosely into a smile with two yarns indicating the corners.

Frosty’s body is approximately 10.75″ wide with the arms spread out, 20” tall, and 4” deep. His body without the arms is 6″ wide. The skin is the same white cotton as the face, and the gloves and feet are the same blue fabric as the hat and nose. He has a scarf wrapped once around his neck, with alternating blue and white fabric stripes. The scarf is tied in a knot at the front of his body, leaving the ends to dangle for about 4.5”. The ends of the scarf are composed of the same cotton as the body, but it is colored blue. The arms are approximately 2.25″ wide and 1.25” deep, with the blue glove covering ¾ of the arm. Both gloves have one small thumb at its top in the shape of a circle, and a rim where it meets the skin. His feet are shaped like half circles, two pieces of blue fabric doubled over and attached to the bottom of the body. They’re approximately 2.25″ wide, 1.75” tall, and 0.5” deep.

His body was once firm, but over the years the stuffing dried up, leaving him with areas of flatness. The main locations of this are the neck and the two joints where the arms connect to the body. The head is no longer supported by the neck, and flops over if he is standing. The gloves and feet are the stiffest parts of Frosty. The stuffing has not yet flattened, so the original shape is still maintained.

All over Frosty, signs of wear and tear are visible. Small patches of cotton and fabric are missing on the hat, nose, cheek, and body, exposing the stitches. The nose and pompom are especially worn out, due to chewing on them when I was a toddler. The glass eyes are scratched, and a lot of the stuffing has lost its shape. While some might say it’s damaged, I think these traits are what make Frosty unique and well-loved.

My object for this assignment is a handmade souvenir from the first time I went to New York City. I have a hobby of collecting different kinds of handmade souvenirs when I go to new places, and this one of my favorites.

This souvenir is about 16 inches long, 20 inches tall and about half an inch wide. It is composed of a canvas-like base, secured to a wood-like frame by 38 silver staples. This frame contains 8 slots carved into each corner, is smooth to the touch, and is multiple shades of beige. The bare base is rough to the touch, almost like sandpaper, and is white in color. Multiple edges of this base are scuffed up due to years of wear and tear, and even contain traces of blue and black splattered paint. There is also the presence of a pear-like glob of black paint, which seems to have seeped onto the back of the canvas while the painting was wet. The backing of the canvas base is actually hair-like to the touch and softer compared to the rigid front. It is an off-white beige color. In the bottom left hand corner of the backing, the canvas has been torn to reveal a glimpse of the wooden frame beneath. On the top right corner, the canvas seems to be folded upwards and crushed into place. Also, the upper left corner has a looser piece of canvas that may not have been stapled down entirely before being sold.

On each of the four sides of the canvas, there are multiple spots where the paint has thinned or worn off. Here, You can see the bits of white canvas peeking out from underneath the heavy black paint. If you look closely, the pattern on the canvas resembles that of a grid, or collection of pixels on a computer screen.

When looking at the front of the souvenir, there is a vast image with many intricate details forming that of a painting. Even after years of use, the painting still smells like that of spray-paint. On the bottom of this painting, there are multiple colors like violet, pink, orange and yellow that create somewhat of a light reflection on water effect, just like the ocean during a sunset. These lines are streaky, as if a finger or paintbrush were used to smooth out the color gradient. This part of the painting also feels rough and rigid like sandpaper. In the middle of the painting, there is a black silhouette of a figure holding up a torch like object. It can be inferred that this represents the statue of Liberty. Around this statue lies a bright white glow, which is reflected in the “water” in the lower half of the painting. Behind the statue lies a bridge like structure, composed of many small blue and white lines, creating a grid-like pattern. These lines look as if they were created by a small palette knife. The bridge connects to an area that appears to be a cluster of buildings. These buildings have the same detailing as the bridge but are all presented in different sizes and shapes. Some are cylindrical, some are rectangular, and some resemble buildings like the Empire State Building and the One World Trade Center. These buildings also have a three dimensional texture outlining them. Across the top of the painting there is a rainbow streak in the sky, that looks as if a paper towel was swiped across it. It seems to represent some sort of galaxy above the city, where there are also a series of white splattered dots representing stars. Lastly, at the top of the painting, there are two north star like objects, one white in color with a pink background and the other with a blue background. There also lies a large circular, planet like figure in the upper left corner of the painting. This planet is rainbow in color with a patchy surface and a blue and pink outline. Overall, this painting is not only pleasant to look at, but represents an important memory in my life.

My object is a jewelry box that includes a matching necklace and earring set. This was worn by my late Aunt Melissa and was passed down to me when I graduated high school. 

The box is 3½ inches long, 3¼ inches wide, and 1½ inches tall. When examining its length and width, it resembles a square that falls just short of actually being one. The box is surprisingly very lightweight when picked up, though it appears to be heavy when looking at it. Something about fancy-looking objects seems as though they would be heavy. 

The box is 3 different shades and textures of purple. The base of the box is a shiny purple, which also includes three of the four bottom sides of the box. It seems to be made of strong plastic that has been painted purple. The paint has chipped in some places which appears to be from bumps or scratches that reveal a white color underneath. It is very smooth to the touch, yet bumpy when running your fingers across the places that have chipped.

The top of the box is a darker purple, in which its texture resembles a velvet cloth. Underneath said cloth seems to be made of hard cardboard, as it feels as though velvet was glued atop an Amazon box. I personally do not like the feeling of velvet, so I do not enjoy touching this part of the box. On top of the darker purple are many repeating metallic, lighter purple connected designs. This is also on all top sides of the box as well as one of the four bottom sides of the box. When looking at each part of the design within the whole, each one is ¾ of an inch long and 1 inch wide. There are 6 connected designs on its length and 8 on its width. You can feel the indents of the design when running your finger across this portion of the box.

When you open the box, the inside holds a thin, white plastic with an oval shape emerging from its center. On the top of the emerging oval are two holes placed next to each other, which is where each earring lies. On either side of the emerging oval are two other holes with nothing inside them. The earrings are silver plated with a hanging small stone of some sort that is half black and half silver, as well as a larger white pearl. Around the emerging oval lies about half of the necklace, with a repeating pattern of the earrings. The middle of the necklace has a sphere bigger than both said stone and the pearl. It is white with many diamond-resembling circles embedded inside of it that glitter in the light. 

The top inside of the box is a white, metallic, silk-feeling material with the words “Genuine Mother of Pearl” printed on it in black cursive. On the top two corners of the silk are two white colored wires protruding from the silk in the shape of triangles. These wires hold the necklace up in a heart shape and the dips of the heart meet where the silver plated clasp is.

I have learned more about this box now than I ever have in its 8 months in my possession. My family and I are unaware of where the box is from, as it shows no company label. My late Aunt Melissa wore this to Lady Gaga’s last concert, and I will be wearing it to her next concert in her honor.

An inanimate object which I hold very close to my heart is my sketchbook. Though I have had dozens throughout my life, this one has stayed with me through some particularly impactful times. I have used this sketchbook on and off since winter 2020. The contents include sketches from the following classes: Basic Ceramics, Design:Form, Intermediate Painting, and Basic Sculpture. The contents are not my finest work. This sketchbook just always seems to be laying around whenever I need to jot down a note or quickly sketch out an idea. This is why I have nicknamed it “Brainstormer”

The binding of the book is made of spiraled black wire. It is a decently large sized sketchbook, just a little too big to carry around all the time, so I rarely bring it anywhere in my backpack. It lives at the SUNY New Paltz Ceramic Studio. The front at one point had the dimensions, and number of pages written clearly on the front. This information has since gone missing from the front. It was either ripped off, or possibly nibbled by my roommate’s late rabbit, Lewis. As this information is no longer readily available to me, I measured the dimensions. “Brainstormer” is a 12×10 inch sketchbook–slightly bigger than printer paper. It contains 160 sheets of paper.

The cover is a dark forest green color. The material is thicker than paper, yet thinner than cardboard. In the places where the face of the sketchbook has torn, the white underside curls upward. A collage of fabric is glued to the front, but forest green color still shows through quite clearly. I did this sometime in 2020 when a fabric project was underway. The top is adorned with a horizontal panel about eight inches long of a thin silk flower-patterned fabric. There is evidence of ripping rather than cutting on the top edge. It leaves the fibers exposed, creating a hair-like appearance. This ripping is evident throughout most fabrics that appear on the cover. Directly to the right there is a smaller, two inch long, vertical piece of orange and white fabric. slightly overlapping it is a horizontal ten inch teal and purple paisley patterned piece of fabric which is more torn than any of the others. a thin band of purple lace runs through the middle horizontally across the entire length of the teal piece. Underneath, in the center of the sketchbook is the light blue remains of a very thin piece of fabric, which appears to have some type of language written on it. The center of this light blue piece is overlapped by another horizontal 2 inch piece of the orange and white fabric. directly beneath is a horizontal piece of orange ribbon, stretch about four inches across. to the left of this blue/orange assemblage in the middle, a piece of the bare sketchbook is exposed, showing a drawing of a human skull. To the left is a vertical piece of light pink lace stretching 5 inches. Layered on top, slightly to the right is another piece of the first fabric I described, vertically positioned and stretching 4 inches. It does not reach the top of the pink lace. bisecting this piece of fabric is another piece which is yellow, very translucent, and has a hint of orange lines splitting like veins. Pink and yellow fabric scraps frame this translucent piece on the right top and bottom corners. Another thin band of purple lace creates a T near the middle of the sketchbook, and corners a square piece of light brown burlap which measures to be about 3.5×3.5 inches. I would consider the burlap section of this sketchbook cover to be the focal point. A cutout piece of cotton fabric bestows the image of a human eyeball, centered precisely in the middle of the burlap. The eye is brown and looking downward to the right. Directly underneath this is a dark green ribbon, stretching horizontally across the entire bottom of the sketchbook, and overlapped by a 7 inch long piece of pink lace. Attached to the lace is a single half-inch loop, which is the same color pink. Finally, a slightly deeper light pink fabric scrap, with dark pink edges is horizontal, and resting in the bottom middle, about 4 inches in length. All fabric is secured with glue, evidently so because the glue is visible in certain spots.

The back is regular brown cardboard. It has not been collaged or tampered with. Though it does have a few streaks of white clay, and a small hint of something yellow.

The object I decided to describe is a single, pointe shoe that was a part of my very first pair. I got these on October 22, 2017, and wore these for about two years.

The shoe is wrapped in a smooth champagne pink satin. When the light hits the shoe it shimmers. One can see the diminutive fibers and threading when it is held up to the light. If one scratches their nail on the material of the pointe shoe, it creates a zipper-like sound.

The shoe is about  7 ½ inches tall. It is shaped like a bowling pin, small at the top, pinched at the sides, round and thick, and then tapered at the base.  The pointe shoe is wrapped in this traditional storage way creating a “y” shape at the top. The top of the pointe shoe is about an inch to an inch and a half in thickness. In the middle, between where the two lines of the “y” meet is a rectangle reinforcement strip that covers where the two sides of the shoe are sewn. This rectangle is tall and about one inch thick with a single stitch on either side. The satin on the very top and down the reinforcement strip of the shoe is lightly dusted with a gray tarnish. It is squeezed with a light pink satin ribbon about  7/8th of an inch in thickness. It appears that the ribbon is wrapped six times on top of each other, around the neck of the shoe. It looks as if the ribbon is acting like a corset containing and shaping the pointe shoe to this particular shape. The wrapping of the ribbon causes a ripple of creases to occur. Just below the ribbon, the shoe has a teardrop opening where a foot may go when it is unwrapped and unfolded. This teardrop shape is outlined with a 5/16th of an inch smooth material that is the same color as the ribbon, sewn together with a single line stitch. The teardrop outlined encases two thin, cylinder, ribbed elastic strings that are the same color as the outlined material. The elastic string is about 5 ½ inches long and knotted at the base. The remaining elastic string is pushed inside the pointe shoe. 

The inside of the teardrop hole has a worn, hard, canvas material with grey fibers. There is also a small metal circle that appears nailed into the canvas near the middle top of the opening. 

The toe box of the pointe shoe is harder than any other part of the shoe and makes a knocking sound when hit. 

The bottom of the toe box is sideways oval-shaped, worn with light gray tarnish similar to the top of the pointe shoe. The side of the oval closer to the back of the shoe has a little less than a one-inch sideways rectangle that is curved at bottom of the shoe. This rectangle shows many parallel strings that were once satin. 

The rectangle from the top of the pointe shoe wraps around the back of the shoe and escapes under an upside side down egg-shaped leather sole. The leather is a milk chocolate brown color with single white stitching around the perimeter. The leather is also tarnished with a grey dusting and has six upward-facing curve designs pressed into the leather. Below the last curve is the number “4 ½” pressed into the leather of the shoe. Below that, are two capital “X’s” again pressed into the leather. The tip of the upside-down egg-shaped leather is cut off by the ribbons that wrap around the pointe shoe. The ribbons are crossed over each other making a small “y” pattern.  It seems that the outer layer of ribbon that is on the front of the shoe is tucked under another piece of ribbon in the back. A small piece of the ribbon escapes the tuck and dangles outside this fold. The tip of the escaped piece of ribbon is folded and clumsily sewn with a cotton candy-colored string. The small piece of freed ribbon is frayed at the bottom and has pulls near the stitching. Below this, at the center base, is another leather sole that is in the shape of a candy corn that is the same color as the other sole with a  darker grey tarnish dusting. The top of the sole has what looks to be a little metal staple puncturing the leather. Below this metal piece is the numbers  “50172.” pressed into the leather. Under this is the word “BLOCH” in all capitals and the letters look slightly stretched, pressed into the leather. Under this is seven downward-facing curve designs pressed into the leather that becomes more faded at the bottom. Tucked underneath this leather sole are ten satin folds from the satin that wraps around the entire shoe. The middle folds are dusted in grey and again one sees the worn strings that appear to be the remains of satin.