Today we’d like to introduce you to Shannon Held.
Hi Shannon, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
When the world shut down in 2020 and my previous career was swept away by the pandemic, I found myself pouring my energy into creating strange, exotic art. As an artist who has always been drawn to a beautifully macabre aesthetic, I began preserving found bones in delicate cabochons. At the time, this kind of accessible art wasn’t really on social media—you could mostly only find large-scale taxidermy. I took my work to Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. Once my sponsor, The Epoxy Resin Store, began sharing my tutorials and my signature drip and space-effect glass painting, Captured in Treasure officially transitioned into a professional venture in 2021, and The Custom Memorial Frame/Urn was Patent-Pended.
But the true heart of my business was born from profound personal grief. Like so many others, I experienced major losses during those heavy pandemic years. The turning point—the real lightbulb moment—happened when my youngest son was looking at a friend’s daughter’s urn and innocently asked, ‘Why a box? Or a vase? It seems so scary’ It hit me incredibly hard. I realized we are missing a vital, tangible connection to the people we’ve lost. I wanted to bridge that gap and create beautiful, custom memorial pieces that keep those precious memories close and alive, without feeling creepy or distant. That realization became the soul of my work, and it is exactly what I strive to provide every day as Shannon, the artist behind Captured in Treasure.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Navigating the business side comes with tough realities. Being a single parent with heavy financial responsibilities means I have to make careful, sometimes restrictive, decisions about how I run and grow Captured in Treasure. But those limitations only reinforce my ultimate goal: making custom memorials accessible and affordable for everyone. I believe that keeping our loved ones close shouldn’t be a luxury—it’s a comfort everyone deserves to have.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
At Captured in Treasure, I specialize in creating unconventional, beautifully exotic art and custom memorial pieces. My artistic roots are tied to finding beauty in the macabre—what some might call ‘vulture culture’—by taking things like found bones and preserving them within delicate cabochons, alongside intricate floral preservation. In the art community, I’m probably best known for those bone and botanical pieces, as well as my signature ‘space and drip’ effect glass painting using resin, which gained a lot of traction when my sponsor, The Epoxy Resin Store, began sharing my tutorials.
However, my true specialty—and what I am undeniably most proud of—is my memorial work. When people lose a loved one, they are usually handed a standard wooden box or a heavy vase. I specialize in transforming ashes, preserved funeral florals, and small keepsakes into beautiful, tangible pieces of art that families can keep close. I am incredibly proud that I can give people a way to honor their loved ones that feels deeply personal, visually beautiful, and comforting rather than creepy.
What sets me apart from others in this space is the combination of my artistic aesthetic and my core mission. You don’t often find memorial artists who embrace a slightly exotic style while maintaining such profound, empathetic reverence for the grieving process. I combine technology within it. But more than the art itself, my commitment to accessibility is my biggest differentiator. The memorial industry can be incredibly expensive. As a single parent managing the heavy financial realities of raising a family, I know what it means to be on a strict budget. I firmly believe that financial strain should never dictate how we grieve or remember our people.
I do not limit memorials to death either. I do memorials for life events as well. Memories impact us in all aspects of life, preserving them is the ultimate goal. What sets me apart is my absolute dedication to keeping these memorials affordable, ensuring that anyone who wants that physical connection to their loved one can actually have it.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
My absolute favorite childhood memories all revolve around my family and traveling. Thanks to my father’s work and my amazing parents working so hard as they had, we traveled all over the country, and I was able to experience wonderful places that most people never get to see. Those trips were the best part of my childhood. They immersed me in so many different cultures and environments, but most importantly, they taught me about history. The importance of our history and the people whom came before us laying the foundation.
Exploring those unique places gave me a profound, enduring love for history and the world itself. Looking back, I realize that growing up with such a deep appreciation for the past and for the stories things hold is exactly why I am so drawn to preservation art and memorial work today. I’ve always loved capturing pieces of life and history, and now I get to do that for other families.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.capturedintreasure.com
- Instagram: https://Instagram.com/Capturedintreasure
- Facebook: https://Facebook.com/capturedintreasure
