The Universal Currency project was conceived in late 2008 as the economic meltdown was unfolding. In 2008, in my world, my husband had just quit his job and was starting a small metal casting business. I was in the middle of a project in a home that had liberal talk radio playing in every room. As I listened to the coverage of the crisis, the advertisements were for precious metals companies urgently exhorting listeners to invest in metals. As the crisis developed, It occurred to me that I had the ability to literally make money. My husband and I started to cast an edition of solid sterling silver objects that weigh about an ounce, the idea being to create a currency that had real value in present time. This is an art piece that has value as a commodity and as a work of art.