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The piece that most captivated me were the two spoons with tornadoes depicted in the spoon itself using silverpoint to create the metallic lines. This kind of art especially intrigues me because it’s like the spoon died and the image depicted was its last memory that’s been frozen in time, almost like a photograph. If that makes sense. The best comparison I can think of comes from the nuclear blasts at Nagasaki and Hiroshima. There were reports of shadows being printed on the walls from the power of the bomb. I’m not sure how this is physically possible (remember, I’m a history major), but that is what I thought of when I saw those spoons on display.
Tornadoes are incredibly devastating storms that occur mostly in the United States. These acts of nature are rotating, funnel shaped clouds that extend from a thunderstorm to the ground. Tornadoes do not occur with every powerful thunderstorm, however. When a warm front meets a cold front, the warm air tries to rise, but clashes with the cold air that acts as a blanket. As the warm air tries to push up in between the cold air, sometimes a funnel occurs causing a twister. When the twister reaches the ground, it becomes a tornado. Tornadoes most often occur in “tornado alley,” which is a flat stretch of land from 
western Texas to North Dakota. This area is particularly susceptible to tornadoes because “the dry polar air from Canada meets the warm, moist tropical air from the Gulf of Mexico.” Typically, tornadoes travel from southwest to northeast, but can move in any direction including backwards. These storms are incredibly powerful as winds can reach up to 300 mph (highest recorded); however, they rarely last longer than ten minutes and leave skinny damage paths. On rare occasions, tornado damage paths have been recorded in excess of one mile wide and 50 miles long. For example, the Tri-State Tornado recorded a path of 219 miles, a duration of 3.5 hours, and a forward traveling speed of 73 mph. Yay for fun facts!
How does all of this USEFUL information connect to these spoons? So, like any good historian, I did a little background into the author of this piece. Her name is Kate Kretz and she makes some incredible pieces. As I stated earlier, she uses a technique called silverpoint, which according to her website, is “an archaic drawing technique that leaves fine, ghostly metallic lines on a gessoed surface.” So cool. What’s even cooler is her interpretation of the work. Now, bear with me as I attempt to explain. She doesn’t necessarily care about the act of nature (tornado, storm, or other disruptive force); she cares that they represent disturbances in family life. Although her website doesn’t explicitly make this claim, I think she uses household items to symbolize an aspect of the family. Generally speaking, a spoon is more representative of family than a landscape or fencepost. So, she creates these incredibly detailed storm depictions out of household items to represent some family trouble. Granted, I would only appreciate the incredible talent behind the art, but now that I know her backstory, the piece is that much more powerful.
And of course: 
First quote: http://www.dosomething.org/tipsandtools/11-facts-about-tornados
Second quote: http://katekretz.blogspot.com/