Heirlooms are a temporal force, a persistent echo, that pass from generation to generation. But heirlooms are also familiar gifts that carry the complicated expectations and weighty desires of those who bestow them. In Heirloom, Nina Rose Prendergast, Skye Malu Baker and HeeJoon Youn all take a left-eyed look at the family jewels.Youn’s attachment to heirlooms arises from being heirloom-less. In between continuous migration, most heirlooms and objects that held sentimental values were disposed of, lost or stolen. Fantasising about tales of hand-me-down objects that reveal hidden powers or inanimate objects that gain life and power through the creator’s desire and sincerity, Youn creates an heirloom in attempts to manifest a childish wish to escape into a world of fantasy.Focusing on rituals of giving, teaching and receiving, Baker is interested in the conceptual framework that imbues an heirloom with the powers of a talisman, or - at worst - the weight of a curse. A gift is never an uninterested gesture, and, within broader codes of behaviour, often seeks a repayment of some kind. Is it possible, however, for the receiver of a gift to take only what is needed and to make of the gift what they will?