As a sociologist, one of my areas of interest has always been the objects that humans create.  From arts and crafts to the seemingly mundane, such as tools and packaging, these objects are ephemera, they are artifacts of our culture, our society, and the people who made them.  The things we make tell a story, they are a reflection of ourselves.  A well-crafted object is a thing of beauty.

Over the years, I’ve found myself collecting weird things.  Pieces of chalk so thoughtfully designed that mathematicians have been known to hoard boxes of them.  A brand of pencil coveted by writers, animators, and architects.  Pieces of clothing that intentionally show the hand of their maker in their stitching and the specific machinery on which they were made.  There is satisfaction in things that are designed with care and intent.

When I joined the stacking community, I was quick to see the marks of good craftsmanship in various corners of the hobby, from highly respected mints, to periods of history where the craft of coin making truly shined.  And when I began to pour my own silver pieces, I wanted to carry that passion for craft into my own work.

Every Pub Sociology piece is the product of my love for the well-crafted object.  From their thoughtful design, which starts in careful research into a topic and involves several stages of graphic design, sculpting, and iteration, to a labor intensive sand casting process, to an elaborate and multi-staged finishing process, every step of each piece’s production is intentional and meticulous.  Everything, down to the cloth bags and cardboard boxes the items ship in has been carefully designed and crafted by the artist.  All because I feel that attention to detail is how I show respect to the objects I make and to the people who buy them.  Thank you for sharing in this passion and taking part in the story of these pieces.